The Goddess of the Sky
by Darth Mel
Summary: Well, there you go...chapter 32...the final chapter to this story! Thanks for sticking with me this long, and let me know what you think about doing the OAV's! ~Darth Mel
1. Prologue to a Dream...

*Notes*  
  
Since this story kind of rewrites the whole thing over, it has spoilers for the whole series. And those of you who haven't seen the whole thing-what happens here doesn't necessarily happen in the real show. Don't say I warned you when Tamahome dies or something. Well, that doesn't really happen, but I wish it would...anyway. Any bad language is kept to a dull minimum, with the exception of Tasuki of course. Nothing else is bad except for your average thug and his gang of advantage taking hoodlums, and I'll make sure that only happens once or twice...or never. We'll see what happens.   
  
Type with {{ this }} around it is a scene set in a different place, sort of but not really associated with regular type. In the prologue, it is just filler and is showing the time differences. See if you can recognize who's talking! BTW, it's from the manga if it sounds a bit different. I tried bolding the words, but it didn't work.   
  
P.S. I don't own any of the basic storyline, but I do own the characters I made up. If you use them, I will only laugh at your stupidity because you can't think of your own characters, which would most definitely be better than mine. So ha.   
  
Chapter One: Prologue to a Dream...  
  
  
"Oh sh...sugar." The young girl exclaimed. " Maybe I should just give up." She sighed and set down her violin. "No matter how hard I try, I just cannot play this song the way it's supposed to be. There's no way I'll ever be able to play this song for the competition next week!" She cried to her best friend, Taylor, who sat watching, with her big brown eyes full of concern for her friend.   
  
Taylor stood. "I'm sure if you practiced..." She was cut off abruptly when her friend shook her head violently, her blue eyes about to overflow with tears.  
  
"I've practiced enough. Look at my hands-they're all calloused and red, just because I spend 5 hours a day practicing this song! This stupid song! I'm sick of it, and I'm sick of trying to play it-I just can't do it Taylor! I can't!"   
  
Taylor sighed, and ran a hand through her red, curly hair. "You said that yesterday, and here you are again, playing this song over and over. You've almost got it, Misara, I can tell...I don't think you should give up just yet." She put the violin in its case and hugged her friend. "Let's go get something to eat, ok? It'll take your mind off the song for a while."   
  
Misara nodded, relieved to be doing something else than play her violin. "Do you mind if we go to that new restaurant across town? I hear it's really good."  
  
"You mean that Chinese one called 'The Four Gods'? That sounds delicious...as long as I can drive!"   
  
"What?? I'm a much better driver than you, Taylor! Last time you almost killed me!"   
  
"Come on, Misara! We've been best friends since kindergarten! Do you honestly think I would kill you in such a boring way?"   
  
"Taylor!!"  
  
  
  
{{{ "Are you alright? You're bleeding."  
  
"Th-thank you so much!"  
  
"Skip the thanks. I'll take money!"  
  
"Huh?? We don't have a cent..."  
  
"What!?! You're broke?! Don't you ladies know money makes the world go around? I'm not giving out any free rides!"  
  
"Nobody asked you to save us!"  
  
"Poor folks bug me! Later!"  
  
"Wait!! Where are we??" }}}  
  
  
"Wow! Would you look at this place Taylor? It's beautiful! I love ancient Chinese stuff like this! You never see anything this beautiful here in America!"  
  
Taylor groaned. "Would you keep it down Misara? You're embarrassing."  
  
Misara grinned, her blue eyes sparkling, and plopped herself down at their table. She rubbed her hands together and looked eagerly at the menu. "You're paying, right?"  
  
  
{{{ "You need to find your companion?"  
  
"He wouldn't have gotten mixed up in this if it weren't for me! I can't go back to my own world until I know he got away safely..."  
  
"You came from...another world!?"  
  
"Y-You probably don't believe me, and I understand. You must think I'm crazy."  
  
"NOT AT ALL!! I just LOVE things like that! That's incredible! I'm Hotohori, although people usually call me something else."  
  
"Oh...I'm Miaka Yuki. Just call me Miaka."  
  
"Stop talking about going away, and stay here a while. I just know the Emperor would never have you killed. What's the matter?"  
  
"O-Oh...I was just thinking how beautiful you are!"  
  
"Everybody says that." }}}  
  
  
"My goodness, that was delicious! I wish I could have food like this all the time!" Misara was still smiling, but her plate was empty...well, all 5 of her plates were empty. Taylor shook her head and smiled at her friend. She seemed happier now that she had something to eat and her mind was in other places than her violin competition. Misara always put so much pressure on herself to be the best; in school, playing the violin, and softball. Few people really knew that Misara was cheerful and happy when she wasn't stressed out, and she was stressed out a lot. She should have a little time for herself, and that's what Taylor intended by bringing Misara out on the town tonight.   
  
"Hey, Taylor? Do you know where the bathrooms are?"   
  
"Huh?" Taylor shook herself out of her daydreaming. "No, but I bet they're that way." She pointed her finger toward the other end of the restaurant.   
  
"Okay, I'll be right back!" Misara trotted off, her dark brown hair swinging.   
  
  
{{{ "Miaka? Could you come over here?"  
  
"What is it?"  
  
"Some time ago, I lost a very precious earring while I was taking a walk near the pond. It's made out of a clear crystal...so it's hard to find! The jewel is called "Glow Stone", and it shines in the dark. But the pond is so deep and my attendants are too scared to find it at night, and as you know, I am not allowed to leave the inner buildings!"  
  
"Oh! You want me to go get it?"  
  
"Oh would you? In return I promise to serve as one of the Seven Celestial warriors of Suzaku."  
  
"Sure! I'll be back in a sec."  
  
"Fool." }}}  
  
  
Misara wandered around for a moment, looking for a sign to the bathrooms. Suddenly, she saw it, back in a dark corner of the restaurant. As she neared the women's bathroom, she noticed a statue of a bird, exactly like the big one at the entrance of the restaurant. At the entrance, however, there had been three other statues, of different animals, and this one was all alone. Misara stepped closer to get a better look, and noticed a small sign declaring that this was Suzaku, guardian of the South. It was pretty cool, she thought to herself. I wonder what the other three statues are.  
  
"Misara..."  
  
"Huh??" Misara whirled around, but there was no one there. Must have been my imagination, she thought. She shrugged her shoulders and went into the bathroom.   
  
  
{{{ "Let me OUT of here!!"  
  
"I don't think so! I prefer Hotohori. Tamahome's just so cold! So I'll just stay in this world and live with Hotohori forever. I don't want to go back to the real world. Who'd want to go back to those awful entrance exams? I'll never go to school or cram school again! Now it's your turn to become my image and watch me from the backside of the mirror!"  
  
"WAIT! Let me OUT of here!!" }}}  
  
  
As Misara took off her ring and washed her hands, she thought more about that statue and that voice that whispered her name. That voice gave her shivers. It was so soft and sounded so sad. "What are you thinking?" She spoke out loud to herself. "It was just a figment of your imagination! All that violin playing is messing with your head, Misara!" She hit the heel of her hand against her forehead a few times, but had to stop because her hands were all wet. She groaned, grabbed some paper towel, and wiped off her hands and face. As she left the bathroom, she hit herself a few more times for good measure. The statue seemed to watch her as she walked by it and headed back to her table.   
  
  
{{{ "Yui! I'm inside the book!"  
  
"The book? You mean."   
  
"That's right! "The Universe of the Four Gods!" We both saw it! I'm closed up inside!"  
  
"I thought that might be it...you're wounded pretty badly, huh?"  
  
"How do you know?"  
  
"I just know...Hold on. I'll be there in a second..."  
  
"No! Yui, you can't! I don't think I can come back anymore..."  
  
"Why? Hey, don't give up! Come back home!"   
  
"But..."  
  
"I'll get you out of the book, so don't you DARE give up, Miaka!"  
  
"Yui..." }}}  
  
  
Outside, it had started to snow. Misara and Taylor stood by the doorway, ready to leave. Misara grabbed her gloves out of her purse, and pulled one on. As she went to put on the other, she noticed that her ring wasn't on her finger.   
  
"Oh no!"  
  
"What? What's wrong, Misara?"  
  
"I must have left my ring in the bathroom when I washed my hands!"  
  
"You're so forgetful Misara! You're always doing that!" Taylor exclaimed.   
  
Misara pulled off her glove and shoved it back into her purse. "I've got to go get it! Wait here for me, ok? I'll be right back!" She took off toward the bathroom.   
  
  
{{{ "If the circumstances were normal, and all seven celestial warriors were present, this would be easy. But Nuriko is the only unwounded warrior...and the amount of spiritual energy needed is enormous."  
  
"We can do it."  
  
"Yes, we can return her to her home."  
  
"Don't you worry about a thing, Miaka." }}}  
  
  
Misara had to walk by the statue to get into the bathroom. As she did, she felt a little dizzy, but shook it off. She pushed the door open to the bathroom. The counter was empty. Her ring wasn't there.  
  
  
{{{"You fool! Concentrate! If you don't, you could spend eternity in the breach between time and space!" }}}  
  
  
"Oh no! Where is it?" Misara looked around frantically, then dropped to her knees and looked on the floor. "Oh! Maybe someone found it and took it to lost and found or something! I'll go look there." She stood up and headed toward the bathroom door.  
  
  
{{{ "You idiot! Come back home! Come home, dammit!! Your mother and brother are worried sick over you!!" }}}  
  
  
She opened the door and stared straight into the eyes of the statue. She stopped, transfixed, and stared at it, wide-eyed. Was it her imagination, or was it glowing?  
  
  
{{{ "Miaka!!!!"  
  
I'm going home...back to my own world...back home!!!  
  
"MIAKA!!!!!!" }}}  
  
  
Before Misara had time to scream, a brilliant red light shot out of the statue and engulfed her.  



	2. The Goddess appears...confused

"Uuunnngg..." Misara groaned in pain. She hauled herself upright from where she was lying on the cold floor, and rubbed the back of her neck. She started to stand as she opened her eyes, then fell back down in surprise. She was in the middle of a beautiful room, and there were four extremely strange people staring at her. One of Taylor's mottos was to follow your instincts, and Misara did just that. She screamed.   
  
"Stop!" A voice boomed. Misara stopped in surprise as the small old lady floated over to her.   
  
Grandma? I must have fallen and hit my head...she thought bewilderedly.   
  
"Who are you calling Grandma?" The old woman asked angrily. Misara backed away in surprise.   
  
"Miaka? You're back already?" A voice asked incredulously from behind her. She spun around and came face to face with an extremely handsome guy, who had long blue hair. He leaned in a little closer and stared for a moment, then shouted, "This isn't Miaka!"   
  
The old lady rolled her eyes. "Thank you for that brilliant deduction, Tamahome. Miaka is safe in her own world at this moment. This is Misara."  
  
Misara spun to face her. "How did you know my name? And who's Miaka?"  
  
"Miaka is the Priestess of Suzaku, and I am Taitskun, ruler of this world." The woman answered, not bothering with the first question.   
  
"Suzaku? But isn't that-it was...just a statue...it's not real...." Misara said hesitantly.   
  
"Yes, it IS real." Taitskun answered. "Suzaku is the guardian of the South, and he has called you here."  
  
"But we already have the Priestess of Suzaku!" The purple-haired woman said. "Why did Suzaku call her here?"  
  
"I must say," Taitskun pondered out loud. "I never expected it to come to this...but if Suzaku willed it..." She sighed heavily, and then beckoned for them all to sit down.   
  
"In the beginning, when I gave a scroll to each of the emperors in each kingdom, I had one scroll left, a scroll that never kept its colors. It kept switching between the four colors of each of the kingdoms, Kutou, Ciro, Hokkan and Konan. On the scroll was written a prophecy, much like the one on each of the other scrolls. This prophecy, however, was different. If a Priestess and her warriors needed her, the Goddess of the Sky would be called by one of the gods and she would protect them all from danger." Taitskun pulled a scroll from her sleeve, which was a deep blood red. "This is the scroll, and since Suzaku has called the Goddess, it is now red." She handed it to Misara. "Keep this, and never lose it, because it is very important, or will be in the end." She looked up at the three people behind Misara, and her next words seemed to be to them, not Misara. "Because she is the one that must protect you, you must teach her how to fight. If you'd like, Hotohori, teach her the skills of the sword, or if Tamahome is willing, he can teach her the martial arts."  
  
"What about me?" The purple-haired woman asked indignantly.   
  
"Cross-dressing won't do her any good, Nuriko." The one called Tamahome teased. He looked at Misara. "This one's actually a guy. Don't let HIM fool you." He pointed to Nuriko. Nuriko scowled, but was cut off by Taitskun.  
  
"Would you two shut up?" Taitskun then turned back to Misara. "Do you understand what your destiny is, Misara?"   
  
Misara nodded slowly, rather dazed. "I do have some questions though...why did Suzaku pick me? And what if I have to go home?"   
  
Taitskun nodded. "Suzaku chose you for reasons only he can tell you. Even I am not fully aware of the god's intentions and motives. As to your last question, it is rather difficult to explain. You are here because Suzaku brought something that is tied to you to this world, and you cannot leave without it. Until you have this thing in your possession, and wish with all your heart to go home, you must stay here."   
  
Misara looked distraught. "I have a violin competition in a week! I can't stay for very long...it's important that I get home!"   
  
Taitskun shrugged. "Be that as it may, you shouldn't go home unless you are really in trouble, or you have fulfilled your duties. And you must find that thing if you wish to go home at all."   
  
Misara gripped the scroll tighter and tried not to cry. I can do this...find the thing, go home, play the violin, and come back, she thought to herself.   
  
Almost as if she had read Misara's mind, and Misara wasn't exactly sure that she didn't, Taitskun said, "By the way, Misara, once you go home, you won't be able to come back easily. That is why you must choose carefully when to go." Taitskun finished talking, then floated higher. "Are you ready to go back to Konan?"   
  
The others nodded. Misara looked puzzled, and turned to them.   
  
"Konan?"   
  
"Oh! How thoughtless of me." Taitskun cut in. "I never introduced to you the celestial warriors of Suzaku." She pointed to the one with blue hair. "That is Tamahome."   
  
He bowed. "Hello." He said, smiling warmly. Misara smiled back.  
  
"That is Hotohori, Emperor of Konan." Misara turned to the next man, who she hadn't really got a good look at. This time she did, and she stood, gaping, at him. He smiled too, and bowed like Tamahome. "I welcome you, Misara."   
  
"H-hello." She said softly, still staring. Then she shook herself, embarrassed, and turned to the next one.   
  
"That's Nuriko." Tamahome interrupted Taitskun. "He's gay."   
  
"Tamahome! I'm gonna pound you into the ground!"   
  
Misara giggled softly. "Hello, Nuriko."  
  
"Well, now that that's done, let's send the four of you back to Konan. Teach her how to fight effectively before the Priestess returns, and then you can look for the remaining warriors. There are four more, by the way, that the priestess must find." Taitskun said to Misara.   
"Ready?"  
  
They all nodded, then she closed her eyes and a red light surrounded them and sent them to Konan.  



	3. Suzaku's Will is clear...but tragic

When Misara opened her eyes, she found herself surrounded by flowers. They were all so beautiful, so many colors...Misara breathed in the sweet scent they gave off. They smelled so much like her mother's flowers. Her mother kept a flower garden every year, planting new kinds with many beautiful colors. However, every year, as long as Misara could remember, her mother had planted red roses. Misara loved those roses more than any other flowers in the garden. Every year, she could look out her bedroom window and see those red blossoms. It was comforting in a way, to know that no matter what, those roses would always be there. Whenever she was sad, she'd go out to the garden and pick a rose, and keep it with her when she fell asleep. She could smell the roses in her dreams. Her mother always smelled of those roses too, even in the winter, when all the flowers had died. The scent these flowers gave off reminded her too much of home, of her mother, and Misara felt her eyes fill with tears. She shook her head violently, determined not to cry. Through her tears, she could see a single bush, filled with red roses. She stood slowly, and walked over to it. Silently picking a rose, she pressed it to her heart and prayed for her mother not to worry about her. Just then, she heard a voice calling her name. She turned around and saw Tamahome walking toward her, a look of concern on his face that reminded her so much of Taylor that she just had to laugh. When he saw her laughing, confusion overtook concern.  
  
"Why are you laughing?" He asked curiously.  
  
"You just...remind me of someone I know, that's all." Misara shook herself. "It's nothing, really. Why were you looking so concerned?"   
  
"You looked really sad, standing there...I just wondered if you were homesick."  
  
Misara nodded slowly, looking at the ground. "I'm okay now, though. Um...Tamahome?"  
  
"Yeah?" He answered, looking at the flowers.   
  
"Could you take me to Suzaku? I have to talk to him about something."   
  
Tamahome looked shocked for a moment, then shook his head. "I can't take you to Suzaku-I don't have a single idea as to where to start looking!" Misara looked distraught, so he stumbled on. "I can take you to the shrine, here in the palace."   
  
"Huh? Palace?" Misara looked around and noticed for the first time that she was standing in a large square, surrounded by buildings with red roofs and an ancient Chinese look about them.   
  
"Oh...well, sure..." She said to Tamahome, still looking around bewilderedly. He took her arm and led her out of the square.   
  
As they walked through the maze of buildings, Nuriko caught up to them. "Oh, Tamahome! You found her!" She smiled at Misara. "We were looking all over for you, even his Highness, but he had to stop because his council had to discuss some official business or something. Anyway, I'm glad Tamahome found you!" She fell into step beside Tamahome. "Where are you two kids headed?"   
  
"You're not that much older than me, Nuriko, to be calling me a kid! We're going to the Temple of Suzaku." He looked disdainfully at Nuriko. "She has to talk to Suzaku. Right?" He asked, looking down at Misara, but she wasn't paying attention. Her eyes had gotten all hazy and dreamy, and she was off in her own little world. Tamahome shook her arm. "Misara?"   
  
"Huh? What? Did you say something?" She looked up quickly, then blushed as if she had been caught doing something wrong.   
  
"What's on your mind?" Nuriko asked cautiously.  
  
"Oh...no one...I mean, nothing, never mind!" She said quickly. Tamahome and Nuriko shared a quick glance. Just then, they reached the door to the temple.   
  
"Do you want to go in alone?" Tamahome asked her. She shook her head forcefully. He shrugged, and the three of them opened the door.   
  
"Tamahome, Nuriko, wait!" A voice called from behind. They all turned to see Hotohori walking quickly up the steps, followed by his council members. He turned around and said something to them, and they left. He hurried up the stairs and greeted them cordially. Then the four walked into the temple of Suzaku together.   
  
As Misara entered the gigantic temple, she gazed around in awe. Then she noticed a giant statue of a phoenix in the middle of the temple.   
  
Oh...right...that's Suzaku. He called me here...but why? Misara wondered.  
  
As she neared the statue, the three seishi respectfully stayed behind, but watched carefully from afar. With hesitating steps, she approached Suzaku. Although the entire statue appeared to be made out of gold, something unusual glittered on it. Misara peered closer, then gave a frightened gasp. In one of the statue's talons, a silver ring with a blue stone gleamed at her. It was the one she lost at the restaurant! She remembered what Taitskun said, that there was one thing that tied her to this world. This ring MUST be it, she thought. She hurried up to the statue, relieved to have found it so quickly. But before she could grab it, the statue closed its talon around the ring, making it impossible to get. Before she could stop herself, Misara screamed and flung herself at the statue, trying desperately to wrench the ring out, but with no success. Tamahome had hurried up behind her after she gasped the first time, and he grabbed her waist and tried to pull her away from the statue. She clung to it, crying, and wouldn't let go. All of a sudden, the metal under her hands felt red hot, and burned her hands. She screamed again as she was flung, along with Tamahome, across the room. Tamahome hit the floor, but Nuriko caught Misara in mid air.   
  
"Misara!" Hotohori cried, but Misara had fainted, and she hung limply in Nuriko's arms.   
  
  
Misara slowly opened her eyes, and resisted the urge to scream. She sat up quickly and looked around, and all of a sudden, her mind remembered. She wasn't at home, where she belonged. She was in a strange world, with a job that she couldn't possibly handle. Then she noticed Hotohori, sitting next to her bed, watching her intently. Misara's cheeks turned a brilliant shade of red, and she stared at her hands. When she did, she noticed the bandages around them, and suddenly felt pain.   
  
"Your hands were terribly burned and blistered." Hotohori said quietly. "My physician did all he could, but they will hurt for a while. Other than that, how are you feeling?" He looked at her with genuine concern in his eyes, with eyes that really cared, and she couldn't bear to meet them.   
  
"I'm alright." She whispered.   
  
A moment of silence passed between them, before Misara remembered something else.   
  
"How's Tamahome? Is he alright?"   
  
"Tamahome is fine. Apart from a few broken ribs, he is unharmed. He is not allowed to leave his bed, but he asked if you would come and see him as soon as you felt better."   
  
Misara nodded. "I'll go now. Will you show me where he is?"  
  
Hotohori offered her his arm, and led her to Tamahome's room, where Nuriko was feeding him some vile substance. He grimaced as he choked it down, but as soon as he saw Misara, he brightened. Nuriko smiled, ran over, and hugged Misara gently.   
  
"How are you feeling, kiddo? We were all so worried about you." He said, taking her hands in his and looking at the bandages. He grimaced also, but smiled warmly. "You'll get better soon, I'm sure." Hotohori nodded in agreement.   
  
Misara walked over to Tamahome's bed and sat down.   
  
"I'm sor-" she began, but Tamahome touched her arm softly and shook his head.   
  
"It wasn't your fault, so don't worry about it." He said.  
  
She sighed and tried to smile at him. "I was wondering, maybe, when you feel better...if you could teach me how to fight?"  
  
He grinned enthusiastically. "Are you sure?"   
  
Misara heard a snort and glanced over at Nuriko, who was rolling his eyes. She snickered, and answered, "Absolutely."  
  
"Well, we'll start tomorrow, then, if you're ready."   
  
"But you're injured! We can wait until you feel better, really!" Misara cried.  
  
Tamahome shook his head. "I'm fine now, just wait until tomorrow. You'll see."  



	4. Hotohori has many admirers...and nightma...

The days and weeks went by, and soon Misara lost track. Forgetting all about her violin competition, she threw herself into her training. Practicing in the morning with Tamahome, learning to fight by the sword with Hotohori in the afternoon, and at night, she would explore the palace or the city. In the beginning, however, she was too exhausted after Hotohori's lesson to even eat, and had to be carried to her bedroom in the middle of dinner. The days that Hotohori was too busy to help her, she spent with Nuriko. And to her horror, she developed a crush on the young Emperor. He was always kind to her, and sometimes they would sit at night in the garden and talk, but Misara could tell that he loved someone else. Nuriko liked him too, but Hotohori never showed preference between the two, which led to conversations between Misara and Nuriko that could last all night. Even Tamahome was kind to Misara, and they developed an easy friendship, teasing included. However, Tamahome seemed distracted too, by something Misara could never figure out. She would catch him staring at her, with a strange look on his face, and when she teased him about it, he stared at the ground and refused to answer. She gave up after a while, and concentrated on her martial arts skills. According to Tamahome, she had learned very fast, and although she wasn't perfect, she was coming along great. Her sword fighting technique, however, left something to be desired. Hotohori was patient with her, but deep down, they both knew that the sword was not for her. One night, when they were talking, he tactfully suggested that she try some other weapon, and she quickly agreed. After spending an entire afternoon in the barracks, she chose the bow and arrow. Hotohori even had a special one made for her, made with the finest wood and painted with red paint. It also had a golden Suzaku on it, which Misara didn't like very well. After her first time in the temple, she hadn't gone back. While exploring the palace, she stayed far away from it, and when Hotohori and the others went in to pray, she claimed she had other things to do. To tell the truth, she was afraid of it, that giant statue and the way it had burned her hands. She desperately wanted her ring back, but there was no way she was going in after it again.   
  
One day, almost three months after Misara had first come to Konan, she was in the garden picking flowers when a familiar voice boomed from behind her.   
  
"Misara! What do you think you are doing?"  
  
Misara stifled a scream and turned around. Standing, or rather, floating, behind her was Taitskun, and she was giving Misara a suspicious look.   
  
"What is it, Taitskun?" Misara asked, puzzled by her sudden appearance.   
  
Taitskun sighed. "I hope you have trained hard these past three months, Misara, because the time for you to fulfill your duties as Goddess of the Sky is almost upon you. I trust you have read the scroll?" She asked.  
  
Misara winced. Truthfully, she hadn't given it a second thought since she got it, but she wasn't about to tell Taitskun that. "Of course!" She answered cheerfully.  
  
Taitsukun eyed her, then continued. "Then you agree to everything? You understand your duties and obligations?" Misara nodded, hoping that she wasn't getting herself into too much trouble. "Good." Taitskun nodded. "I came here with a message for you. You can tell the other if you wish. Miaka, the Priestess of Suzaku, is coming back. She should be here tomorrow, if everything works out as I have seen. I will be back tomorrow to discuss with her your role in this, and what she must do now that you have arrived." With a poof, Taitskun disappeared and Misara was left alone in the garden, staring at the space where the Oracle had once been.   
  
"NURIKO!!!" A voice rang out, echoing down the hallways. Nuriko opened his door just in time, for Misara barged in, a scroll in her hands. She began pacing the floor anxiously.   
  
"What's going on, Misara? Is Tamahome back already and teasing you again?"   
  
"NO!" Misara stopped herself from screaming too loud. Tamahome had left a week ago. He said he had some business to do, but he wouldn't say what. If Misara knew him, and she knew him well, he was looking for more money. In the short space of time that he was absent, Misara wandered around listlessly, bored to death. Tamahome was her best friend in this world, and without him, there wasn't much to do. Hotohori was too busy with matter of state, and Nuriko had other things on his mind. "He's not back yet, but I wish he was." She continued.  
  
"Is that what this recent mood swing is about?" Nuriko asked.   
  
"It's THIS!" Misara shouted, flinging the scroll at the purple-haired seishi. Luckily, Nuriko caught it. He opened it.   
  
"Isn't this the scroll Taitskun gave you?" He asked, puzzled.  
  
"Yes!" Misara cried. "Can you read it?"   
  
Nuriko shook his head slowly. "Take it to His Majesty. He can read it for you. Wait, I'll go with you! I haven't seen him more than twice today!" With that, the two hurried down the hall and through the palace, to Hotohori's chambers, where he was resting. Misara knocked impatiently, but politely, on the door.   
  
"Enter." A gentle voice was heard from within.   
  
Misara pushed open the door. Hotohori was sitting at his dressing table, gazing into the mirror. It wasn't the first time that Misara had found the narcissistic emperor in this state. She stopped herself from sighing, and handed him the scroll.   
  
"I was supposed to read this, but I forgot all about it. I can't read this country's language, and Nuriko won't read it for me. Can you read it to me?" She asked him quickly. He studied the scroll for a moment, then nodded slowly, and began to read it.  
  
"It says here that the Goddess of the Sky connects all the celestial warriors that are living when she arrives, because the sky is the one thing that connects the four kingdoms. She is the protector of the ones chosen by the four gods, and can only be summoned if absolutely needed. Once summoned, she must perform the following duties: First, she must be willing to give her life to protect any of the Celestial Warriors. Second, in order to accomplish the first duty, she must distinguish these warriors from normal humans by the signs which they bear, and once she touches those signs, she is blessed with their power and may use it to fight against any force which threatens. If she is threatened by a Celestial warrior whom she is sworn to protect, she will not be able to fight back. Third, if she is present at the summoning ceremony of any of the four gods, the Goddess of the Sky will receive wishes like the Priestess. If one of the Celestial warriors should die, with permission of the Priestess, the Goddess of the Sky can bring that one back to life, but only one warrior can be brought back. If the Priestess asks, the Goddess must obey her. However, if the Goddess is asked to bring a fallen warrior back to life, she must do so by exchanging her life with that of the warrior."  
  
"Hold on a second!" Nuriko exclaimed. "If I died, and Miaka asked Misara to bring me back to life, the only way she could do that is to kill herself?"   
  
Hotohori nodded grimly.   
  
"That is the stupidest thing I've ever heard of!" Nuriko exploded.   
  
Hotohori continued. "This is the legend of the Goddess of the Sky. Here it is written, and so it shall be." He stared for a few moments, then rolled it back up. "That's all it says." He handed the scroll back to Misara, who took it dazedly.   
  
"Misara? Are you alright?" Nuriko asked worriedly.   
  
She nodded slowly. "I'm kind of tired...I think I'll go lay down for a while in my room...I need to think." She stood and walked over to the door. She hesitated in the doorway, and turned halfway as if to speak, but changed her mind and left.   
  
That night, as she was getting ready to go to bed, she remembered what Taitskun had told her. She grimaced when she remembered that she didn't tell the others that Miaka was coming back tomorrow. She shrugged.   
  
Oh well...It'll just be a surprise, she thought. Too bad Tamahome isn't here...I wonder what he would have to say about all this...  
  
  
Much later that night, when the entire palace was sleeping, Misara sat in her bed, awake. She had had a nightmare, and it disturbed her. A tall man with strange blue eyes was watching her in it, and she was unnerved by how blue and deep his eyes were. She shook herself slightly, and climbed out of bed. For an hour since, she had been trying to go back to sleep, but with little success. She pulled on a silk robe, loaned to her by Nuriko, and quietly opened her door.   
A little fresh air is all I need...I'll just walk around the palace a few times...she thought to herself.  
  
She walked silently down the hallways, listening for any guards that might be about. Walking past Hotohori's chambers, she heard a muffled crying. She pressed her ear to the door and listened again. She heard the sound again, and opened the door slowly. In the giant bed in the corner of the room, Hotohori lay sleeping, illuminated by a few candles. His sheets were tangled and he was tossing and turning in his sleep, randomly crying out. She hurried over to him and grabbed his shoulder.   
  
"Hotohori...wake up! Hotohori!" She shook him rapidly. "Please, Hotohori, wake up!" Suddenly, he sat up, his eyes wide.   
  
In the dim light, it was hard to see, but Misara was still taken aback when he whispered, "Thank you, Miaka." He put his arms around her and pulled her close. Breathing in deep, he said, "I've forgotten how warm you are...Miaka...thank you."   
  
Misara hesitated for an instant, then whispered back, "I'm not Miaka, your Highness, I'm Misara."   
  
Hotohori pulled away as if she had burned him and stared at her. Misara felt as if her heart was breaking. She stood up.   
  
"I hope your Highness feels better in the morning." She whispered, then hurried from the room before he could see her tears. Running as fast as she could, she rushed to her room and threw herself on the bed, then cried herself to sleep.  



	5. Miaka returns...and leaves again

Early the next morning, Misara woke up later than usual, and she was still tired. She pulled herself out of bed and over to the mirror to look at herself. Her eyes were red and puffy and sleep-deprived. It looked like she had been crying. For a moment, she couldn't figure out why, and then it hit her. She almost fell over when she remembered the events of the previous night. Even though she cried last night, thinking about it this morning only brought anger.   
Even though she was mad, her thoughts still surprised her. How dare he mistake me for Miaka, she thought. Nuriko tells me all the time that I look almost exactly like her, but by now he should know the difference. Its obvious now that he's in love with Miaka...  
  
She stopped in mid-thought. If he was in love with Miaka, then there was no way she could have a chance with him.   
  
...And probably no way to convince him that I'm a completely different person, and not just some Miaka-look-alike....   
  
She frowned at her reflection in the mirror, then turned quickly and got dressed. She frowned even harder at the thought that she had probably already missed breakfast.   
  
  
Indeed, she had missed breakfast, and it was almost time for lunch when she wandered into the gardens to sit and think. Nuriko was nowhere to be found, and his Highness was busy with his advisors. Something bad was going on in Konan, and everyone seemed antsy about it. It appeared that some of Kutou's armies had invaded the borderlands between the two countries, and were pillaging villages. As she was walking around a corner earlier that morning, she heard some of the servants whispering about the Priestess and how she would save them. That made Misara remember that Miaka was coming back today. However, since Misara couldn't find Nuriko, and Tamahome was gone, she decided to keep it to herself. She was in no mood to see Hotohori again, and besides, he was busy. So she went out in the gardens and sat among the roses. After a while, her stomach started to growl, and she pondered the idea of getting up and searching for food. As her hunger got the best of her, she sighed and pulled herself up from the ground. As she headed back into the palace, a servant almost ran into her.   
  
Without bothering to apologize, he hurried on, shouting, "The Priestess has returned! The Priestess is back!!" Misara jerked her head in the direction he had come from and saw another servant running toward her.   
  
This time, she grabbed his arm and asked, "The Priestess is back?"  
  
"Yes, my lady, she is! She fell onto His Highness's head from the sky!"  
  
Misara let go of his arm and he continued running. She smirked at the thought of Miaka breaking Hotohori's neck, then chided herself because it was childish to think that way. She wanted to hurry as fast as she could to the hall where Hotohori was, but in order to do that, she had to take a short-cut through the Temple of Suzaku. Chiding herself again for being so stupid, she climbed the steps to the Temple and opened the door. To her surprise, Hotohori and Nuriko were in there already, with another girl. They all looked surprised to be there as well, and Misara wondered if it was just another trick of Suzaku. As she drew nearer to them, she got a good look at Miaka. Although Nuriko and the others had told her countless times that they were almost identical, she still gasped when she saw Miaka. It was like looking directly into a mirror, except Miaka's eyes were a brownish-hazel color instead of Misara's ocean blue. Miaka looked even more shocked then Misara felt, because she halfway screamed and stepped back. Nuriko started laughing, but was cut off by Taitskun's booming voice.   
  
"What are you doing now?" She demanded, then muttered to herself about 'Celestial Idiots' .   
  
"Taitskun!" Miaka cried. "What's going on?" She turned back to Misara, who waved at her and smiled. This was kind of fun, Misara thought. However, this only seemed to upset Miaka more, and she spun back around to Taitskun, more confused than ever. Misara thought she saw Taitskun crack a tiny smile, but it was gone when she looked again.   
  
"Miaka, this is Misara." Taitskun said sternly. Miaka turned and looked at Misara again, as Taitskun continued. "Suzaku has summoned her as the Goddess of the Sky, and the protector of the Celestial Warriors. To make a very long story short, she is to the Celestial Warriors what they are to you. They protect you with their lives, and she does the same for them. It is up to her, however, if she will protect the Priestess. Of course, she cannot harm the Priestess in anyway, but because the Priestess is not a Celestial Warrior, she is not entitled to the Goddess's protection. Because the Priestess is the Priestess, the Goddess of the Sky must do whatever she asks, short of harming those she is sworn to protect. However, if the Goddess is present at the summoning of one of the beast gods, the Priestess will receive an extra wish and the Goddess with get one of her own."  
  
Miaka interrupted. "So she protects the Warriors of Suzaku? How?"   
  
Taitskun rolled her eyes. "If she touches the symbol of a Celestial Warrior, she is filled with their holy power and may use it to protect them and herself. Also, there is one more thing, Miaka. If a Celestial Warrior should die, the Goddess of the Sky may bring them back to life. Only one may be brought back, and the Goddess cannot do this without your permission. If you ask, she will obey."  
  
"Aren't you going to tell her that-" Nuriko was cut off by Taitskun's angry glare. "Nevermind, then. " He muttered under his breath.   
  
Taitskun turned back to Miaka. "Do you understand?" She nodded, then Taitskun turned to Misara. "Do you understand the scroll and your role here?" Misara nodded slowly. "Good." Taitskun said decisively. "Then I shall leave you to search for the remaining warriors of Suzaku. Good luck." With a poof, she disappeared.   
  
Before Misara had time to think, Miaka bounded up to her happily. "So you're from my world, huh? Where're you from? I know we'll be best of friends, right?"   
  
Misara hesitated, then smiled brightly and nodded. "Of course! And I'll protect you the best I can, not that that's promising much..." Miaka laughed, and grabbed Misara's arm.   
  
"We can talk over lunch. I'm starving!"   
  
"Me too! Let's go get something to eat."  
  
"I'm with you! See you guys later!"  
  
  
Much later, when the two girls had had all they could eat, they met Nuriko and Hotohori in the garden.   
  
"Misara said that Tamahome went off somewhere..." Miaka began.   
  
Nuriko nodded.   
  
"Well, I want to go find him...Will you come with me, Nuriko?" Miaka asked, batting her eyes at the purple-haired man. Nuriko rolled his eyes.  
  
"Fine." He said dramatically, throwing up his hands. "Nothing will keep you from Tamahome, will it?"   
  
Miaka turned at brilliant shade of red, and Misara turned to her, interested in this new information.   
  
Before Misara could speak, Hotohori asked, "Will Misara be going with you?"  
  
Misara shook her head. "As much as I'd like to see that twinkie again, I have to practice my violin. Did I tell you? Taitskun left it in my room as a present! I'm so happy that I get to practice...I'm so out of it right now." She shook her head again, and continued. "Anyways, I have to protect you guys, right? So I can't do that until I touch your symbols, although I'm not sure what will happen."   
  
"Nuriko first, since he's leaving with Miaka." Hotohori said. Nuriko nodded and stepped forward. Pulling the collar of his shirt down, he revealed his symbol, which shone brightly.   
He winked at Misara. "I'm sure it won't bite you or anything." Misara winced slightly, then reached for it. The instant she touched it, a dazzling red light shone out and swirled around them. Misara felt wonderfully happy, horribly sad and exhilaratingly dizzy all at the same time. She felt something warming her, and she looked down and saw an identical symbol on her chest. She removed her hand and the light dissipated. Nuriko's eyes were wide as he stared at her. Misara had the horrible feeling that she had done something wrong.   
  
"What?" she whispered, unnerved by Nuriko's startled eyes.   
  
Nuriko shook his head. "Nothing...it's...nothing. I just suddenly felt like all the strength and power I had left me, and then when you let go, it came back."   
  
Hotohori interrupted them. "I believe it is my turn now." He turned to Misara and tried to joke. "I'm sure you will have your hands full protecting me." Misara, still hurt by the events of the previous night, looked away. Hotohori sighed softly, and out of the corner of her eye, Misara could see Miaka watching, looking very interested. Hotohori half turned and pulled his collar down to show the symbol on his neck, which was shining as brightly as Nuriko's. Misara hesitantly reached out and touched his symbol softly. Like before, the swirls of red light and a wave of strong emotions came over her, this time confusion and what felt like love. She couldn't see it, but she knew from the warmth that his symbol had appeared on her neck. The dizziness came too, this time overpowering her as she kept her hand on his neck. It was so strong that she had to tear herself away from him and lean against Nuriko, who looked at her with concerned eyes.   
  
"I'm alright." She said after a minute, pulling herself back together again. However, that unsettling feeling in her mind would not go away, and shook herself out of her daze when Miaka began to speak.   
  
"I suppose that's it...we should get going, Nuriko." Nuriko nodded, as did Hotohori. The two moved to leave, but hesitantly, out of concern for Misara, who had leaned up against a tree. She looked up and saw that they were still there, and motioned for them to go.   
  
"Ok then...we'll be back soon with Tamahome, ok?" Miaka said as she and Nuriko headed off toward the stables. As soon as they disappeared, Misara collapsed onto the ground. Hotohori hurried over as she faded into unconsciousness.   
  
  
Not much time had passed when Misara woke up. She was still in the garden, she could tell by the smell, but when she fully opened her eyes, she realized that she was in Hotohori's lap. Her first instinct was to get out quickly, but she was far too exhausted to move very fast. She did, however, pull herself out of his lap, and tried to stand. Another wave of dizziness passed over her, but she forced it away. Hotohori stood too, and placed his hand carefully on her shoulder.   
  
"Are you...alright?" He asked softly.   
  
"Yeah, I'm fine...really." She tried to smile, but it turned into a grimace as she felt her knees buckle again. Struggling to keep herself standing, she said, "I think I need to go rest for a while...I'll see you at dinner."   
  
Hotohori hesitated, and then nodded. "At dinner then. I hope you feel better by then, Misara."   
She turned and walked away from him, toward her room, and when she got there, she collapsed on the bed and fell asleep.  



	6. Miaka is in Kutou...and so is Taylor

Misara didn't wake until late the next day, and only because of a terrible pain near her heart. It only lasted briefly, but it was enough to take her breath away. As she stood up, she realized that she wasn't dizzy anymore, and that she actually felt better than she had in days. Except for the chest pain, she was fine, and she decided to get out her violin and practice.   
  
I haven't practiced for three months, she thought to herself. As she cradled the instrument in her arms, she was saddened by the thought of how unfamiliar it seemed to her. She usually never went more than a day without practicing, but since she didn't have it for the past three months, she decided that it wasn't really her fault. Sighing, she set it on her shoulder and started out with her scales. Cringing at how out of tune it was in the humidity, she wished she had some music to read. Remembering a concerto she had played a few years ago, she started to play.   
  
Hotohori was pacing nervously through the hallways. For the life of him, he couldn't figure out what was wrong with Misara, besides the fact that he called her Miaka, which mortified him to no end. Putting himself in her place, he realized how much that must have stung, but why on earth was she fainting? Surely it didn't have anything to do with him, so could it have something to do with her being the Goddess of the Sky? Thoroughly confused, he was interrupted in the middle of his thoughts by a strange sound that wafted through the halls. It was impossible to describe, but he liked the sound. He followed the beautiful sound though the palace and finally reached Misara's room. The sound was coming though the door from her room, and gathering his courage, Hotohori opened the door and peered in curiously. Misara was standing in the middle of the room, with something brown on her shoulder. He guessed that the sound was coming from the brown thing as she pulled a long stick across the top of it. He must have made a sound, for she stopped and turned around to face him. Her eyes grew wide, then her cheeks reddened.   
  
"Was I playing too loud?" She asked. "I'm sorry..."   
  
"No, no..." Hotohori shook his head quickly. "It's just...what is that? Is that thing making that beautiful sound?"   
  
Misara laughed quietly, a pretty sound that reminded him of Miaka's laugh. Wanting to hit himself for thinking of Miaka again, he frowned. Misara saw his frown and stopped laughing.   
  
"I'm sorry, I wasn't laughing at you..." She apologized quickly, looking rather frightened.   
  
Hotohori waved his hand. "No, it's alright. I was just...thinking of something..."  
  
"Oh." Misara said quietly.   
  
A moment of silence passed between them, before Hotohori spoke.   
  
"Would you play something for me?" He asked politely. Misara nodded slowly, then began to play a soft, lilting piece. Hotohori sat by her, listening intently, until they were summoned to dinner.   
  
  
Early the next morning, Misara was up and wide awake. She was practicing with her bow and arrow, but after a few hours, she was bored. Sighing, she put them away and decided to walk out into the city. Hotohori was busy with his advisors again, and she didn't want to disturb them, so she left without telling him. After walking a while in the city for a couple hours and missing lunch, she was about to turn around to go back to the palace when she stopped in her tracks and gasped softly. Her heart was hurting again, this time more than before, and she looked down at her chest. She gasped even louder this time, drawing attention from the people around her. On her chest shone Nuriko's symbol, and it was getting brighter every second, and burning her skin. Or was that her imagination? Misara couldn't tell, and she could have cared less because the pain was becoming unbearable. She sank to her knees in pain and was about to scream out when suddenly, the pain vanished and she felt fine. She looked down again and the symbol was gone, like the pain. Someone came up to her and asked if she was alright. She could only nod distractedly, her mind racing furiously to think of what it meant. She pulled herself to her feet and hurried back to the palace as fast as she could. She wanted to read that scroll again and see if it said anything about this.   
  
When she walked into the palace, she was confronted by Hotohori, who was looking very upset. In fact, she had never seen him so mad before. He demanded to know where she had been and why she didn't tell anyone where she was going.   
  
"I was going to tell you, but you were busy..." she began, but he cut her off.   
  
"That doesn't excuse your behavior. I was worried about you when no one could find you. I even sent guards out to search for you in the city!" He was about to continue, but Misara was so mad that she interrupted him.  
  
"Why should you care about me anyway? It's my job to protect you and all the others, but you don't have to care a thing about me! I think you only want me around to remind you of how much you love Miaka...and every time you look at me, I know you're wishing I was Miaka instead of myself!" Misara was so furious that she couldn't say anymore, and ran off to her room, horrified that she had said something like that to His Highness.   
  
All that afternoon, Misara silently bashed herself for being so childish, immature, and selfish. She played fierce, angry pieces on her violin to get rid of the tension until her fingers were raw and she couldn't think of anything else to play. As mad as she was at herself for being stupid, she didn't come out of her room for dinner. However, she did come out when a servant knocked on her door and informed her that Nuriko was back. Thoughly confused, she hurried to the main hall to find Nuriko and see why Miaka wasn't back too.   
  
When she reached the hall, she found Nuriko kneeling, telling Hotohori what had happened in the few days they had been gone. Misara rushed into the room, interrupting them and asked loudly, "Where's Tamahome and Miaka? Where are they?? I thought they were coming back with you, Nuriko!"   
  
Nuriko spun around and looked at her with sad eyes. "I was just about to tell His Highness that. I suppose you should know as well. You see, Miaka's friend, Yui, or something, is supposedly here in this world. Miaka wanted to find her, so she ran off without telling us, and Tamahome went after her. Oh yeah, so did Chichiri."  
  
"Who?" Misara asked.   
  
"He's another one of the Celestial Warriors. He saved us from Kutou assassins, and then when Miaka and Tamahome ran off, he followed them and told me to come here to tell you what had happened."   
  
Hotohori's eyes narrowed. "Where did Miaka go, exactly?"  
  
Nuriko sighed loudly. "Our best guess is that she went looking for her friend, who is possibly the Priestess of Seiryu. She's in Kutou, sire."   
  
Hotohori stood up quickly. "My horse, now!" He all but screamed. His advisors struggled to hold him back, and tried to talk some sense into him. There was no way, they exclaimed, for him to go anywhere near Kutou without instigating a war. Hotohori gave up and sat back down on his throne, looking very dangerous, his hands gripping the armrests in anger. Nuriko looked on with his sad eyes, and Misara stared at the floor.   
  
The waiting was the hardest part. Every second stretched on while the three waited for Miaka's return. Hotohori was all but civil to anyone in the beginning, but after a while he calmed down. Nuriko tried to comfort him, but he wouldn't eat or sleep. His face began to show signs of weariness, and just when Misara started to get really worried, Miaka came back.   
  
Misara was in her room, practicing her violin as usual, when Nuriko rushed by and shouted,   
  
"Miaka's back!! Hurry up, Misara!" Misara set her violin carefully in its case and latched it, then bolted out the door. She hurried into the hall where she found Hotohori, Nuriko, Miaka and Tamahome. She rushed up to Miaka and hugged her tightly.   
  
"Thank goodness you came back alright!" She said, breathless from her run. Miaka smiled her big, happy smile and said, "Of course I'm alright! How have things been here with you?"   
  
"Just fine, I've been practicing for hours on end but I love it." Misara answered.   
  
She then turned around and hugged Tamahome. "Did anything exciting happen on your 'adventure'?" She asked him. Before he could answer, Misara turned quickly back to Miaka. "Did you find your friend?"   
  
Miaka shrugged. "Well, sort of. It's a long story." Her face brightened instantly. "Oh!" She cried. "I forgot to tell you guys about Chichiri!" She motioned to the tall, blue-haired man standing behind everyone, who no one had noticed. He was smiling oddly, and his eyes didn't move when he said "Hello!" cheerfully. How funny, Misara thought, but he seemed nice enough. "Chichiri, right? I'm Misara." She said, walking up to him and holding out her hand. He didn't seem to understand the gesture and just looked at her funny. She blushed and withdrew her hand.   
  
A loud cry sounded from behind her. It was Miaka, who had just remembered something else. Misara turned to her, confused.   
  
"Misara, there was another girl in Kutou, with Yui...she looked really surprised to see me and called me Misara at first. She's got red hair that's really curly and wild and brown eyes. She said she was your best friend...but..." Misara gasped and put her hand to her mouth.   
  
Taylor....she thought....It has to be Taylor...but...how did she get here??  



	7. Another quest...and indigestion

Miaka was set on finding the other three warriors quickly, so she wanted to get started the next day. They all rushed about making preparations and were so exhausted by the time that evening came that they hardly ate anything. Except for Miaka, that is. When dinner was over, Misara headed to her room and plopped down on the bed to think about these new developments. For the life of her, she couldn't think of why Taylor was in this world at all. She sat up quickly, her eyes wide. Did the Seiryu Seven want her as their Goddess like Misara was for Suzaku? She lay back down. No, there was only one Goddess of the Sky, and that was her. There couldn't be another one. Miaka didn't say much about her trip to Kotou, but she did assure Misara that Miaka's friend Yui would make sure Taylor was safe, at least until Misara could get her back. From the looks of things, Yui had become the Priestess of Seiryu, making her and Miaka enemies. Misara felt awful for the two of them, who had apparently been best friends since kindergarten, just as Misara and Taylor were. Miaka seemed pretty optimistic about it though...she knew Yui didn't hate her and had most likely been forced to become the Priestess of Seiryu. Misara sighed, but was interrupted in her thoughts by a loud conversation in the next room. Miaka and Misara's rooms were adjacent, and one of the voices sounded like Miaka. Misara didn't mean to eavesdrop, but since the other voice was Tamahome, she pressed her ear against the wall to listen.   
  
They were arguing about something...Miaka ignoring him, it sounded like. Just then, the door in Miaka's room opened and she heard Miaka gasp. A third voice joined the others, this one was definitely Hotohori. Misara rolled her eyes and pulled away from the wall, disgusted with the way this soap opera was turning out. Before she could get back to her bed, she heard Miaka scream. Misara, startled, hurried over to the next room, only to find the three of them staring at the ceiling. She looked up, and almost screamed herself. A man, dressed in black, was sitting on the ceiling, and his evil sounding voice resonated through the room.  
  
"Give us the warrior called Tamahome, and the Kotou armies will advance no further!" He demanded. In a flash, Chichiri appeared at Misara's side and moved his hands in a strange fashion. The black man dropped from the ceiling and jumped at Chichiri. Before he reached the monk, Misara had hurled herself at Chichiri and knocked him to the ground, catching the tip of the assassin's knife on her arm. The man didn't stop to fight, and bounded out the door, only to get a piece of railing thrown at him by Nuriko. However, he missed, and the intruder quickly vanished.   
  
"Sorry about that, Chichiri." Misara said quietly, pulling herself off the monk and inspecting her wound. It wasn't too deep, but she was still dripping blood onto the carpet.   
  
"We have to...give Tamahome...to Kutou?" Miaka asked quietly, her eyes wide.   
  
Hotohori shook his head. "Absolutely not-we would never ask him to give himself up to the enemy." He said firmly. Tamahome stared at the ground, and didn't say a word. By this time, Chichiri had pulled himself up from the floor, and he looked at Misara strangely.   
  
"You...you're the Goddess of the Sky." He said. "That's why you protected me, no da." He scrunched up his face in thought. "Don't you have to touch my symbol before you protect me? Because you didn't, no da. So why did you do that?"   
  
Misara was lost in thought for a moment, then answered softly, "I don't know." She looked up at him and shrugged. "I don't know why, Chichiri." She sighed. "Although, I might as well touch it now, you know. No use waiting."   
  
He nodded and lifted his pant leg to reveal his symbol, shining brightly on his knee. Misara bent down and placed her hand over it. Almost instantly, the same symbol appeared on her knee as that blinding red light swirled around them. The emotions she felt from Chichiri, gratitude mostly, were all overshadowed by a thick dark feeling she got from him. It made her overwhelmingly sad, and when she pulled her hand away, trails of tears were running down her cheeks. She stood quickly and wiped them off as another wave of exhaustion hit. She bid them goodnight, a little absently, and wandered off to her room, where she fell asleep almost immediately.   
  
  
Later that night, when the entire palace was enveloped in silence, Misara was awakened by Tamahome. When Misara had rubbed the sleep out of her eyes and saw the determined look on his face, she knew exactly what he was going to do. She was about to protest when he put his hand over her mouth.   
  
"Don't even say it, Misara. I got the same thing from Miaka, and I don't need to hear it again." He sighed. "I don't think I should be asking this now, since I'm leaving in a minute and you'll go off with Miaka to find the other warriors. I'd...feel safe...in Kutou alone...if I know you'd protect me if you could. So, could you...?" He trailed off, looking expectantly at her. She looked sadly down at him, then blinked hard and nodded. He nodded too, and a moment later, his symbol appeared on his forehead. This time, however, instead of touching it with her hand, Misara, trying her hardest not to cry, leaned over and kissed it. As soon as she did, the tears spilled from her eyes and that same red light sparkled, illuminating the entire room. The emotions she felt from Tamahome were so deep that she didn't even want to think about them, and she pulled herself away. He stood, and wiping the tears from her eyes, whispered, "You won't tell Miaka that I'm gone, will you? Promise me..." She nodded and a moment later, he was gone.   
  
  
The next morning, Misara rolled out of bed, sleepy-eyed, to the sound of frantic footsteps outside her door. She opened her door and peered out. Miaka was talking to Hotohori, looking wild-eyed and frantic, with a piece of paper in her hands that she was begging Hotohori to read. Immediately, Misara felt guilty that she hadn't told Miaka that Tamahome had left, but then she remembered her promise to him. However, that only made her feel worse. Before she could duck back into her room, Miaka spotted her and hurried over.  
  
"Misara!" She cried. "Did you know about this? That Tamahome was going to run off? He promised he wouldn't..." She trailed off for a moment. "Did you know?"   
  
Misara sighed, and looked at the ground. By this time, Nuriko, Chichiri and Hotohori had gathered around to hear her answer. "Yes..." She said softly. "But he made me promise not to tell you, Miaka!" She said louder. "I wanted to tell you, but he made me promise..." She looked up at Miaka again. "I'm really sorry, Miaka."   
  
Miaka shook her head. "It's alright...you promised...I shouldn't be mad at you." She narrowed her eyes. "I should be mad at Tamahome! But since he's not here now, and we have other things to do, I guess we should start looking for the other Celestial warriors." She sighed, and stuffed the note in her pocket. "Let's get started, okay?" She looked around at the four of them, and they all nodded simultaneously, and headed off to get dressed.   
  
  
When Miaka, Nuriko, Chichiri and Misara were finally ready, they met with Hotohori in his throne room. He bid them goodbye and wished them all good luck, but it was obvious that he wanted to come. However, his advisors felt it in his best interest if he didn't go, and so he reluctantly agreed to stay behind. As they were heading out the door, he stood and told Miaka to take care. Then, almost as an afterthought, he repeated it to Misara. The two nodded, then walked out, followed by Chichiri and Nuriko.   
  
After traveling down the road for at least an hour, Miaka pulled a compact out of her pocket and stared at it. Misara leaned over on her horse and tried to look at it. It wasn't an ordinary mirror...in fact, it had a symbol on it. Misara, not being able to read it, asked, "What does that symbol stand for?"   
  
Miaka looked at her oddly. "It's mountain...I thought you..." Her eyes grew wide. "Where are you from again, Misara?"   
  
"Michigan, or basically, the United States...why?" She answered, thoroughly confused.   
  
"I'm from Japan!" Miaka cried. "I don't speak English very well at all...but I can understand you..."   
  
"You're right! I don't know a word of Japanese, but I understand everything you say, and Nuriko too!" Misara looked at Nuriko. "Do you know English?"   
  
Nuriko gave her a look. "What the heck is English?"   
  
Misara stared at her for a second, then started to laugh. "This is weird...but I guess it's something Taitskun did so we could all understand each other. What language are we speaking now?" She asked.   
  
Miaka shrugged. "I thought I was speaking Japanese...you're right, this is weird. What do you think, Chichiri?" She turned around to speak to him, but he wasn't there. Misara spun around in her seat.   
  
"Where did he go?" She asked, a little frantically.   
  
"Don't worry about him, Misara." Miaka said. "I think he knows what he's doing."   
  
Misara stared behind her for a moment, and then shrugged her shoulders. "Okay, then." She said reluctantly.   
  
  
A little while later, they had stopped to eat at a small restaurant. The three of them sat down to eat, and Miaka ordered almost everything on the menu. When the man taking their order looked suspicious about how they were going to pay for it, Miaka stupidly pulled out a big pouch of coins and set it on the table. The guy's eyes widened, and he hurried off to get their food.   
  
"Put that away, Miaka, before we get into trouble." Nuriko whispered hurriedly, glancing around the room. The only other customers there were two men, sitting far across the room, but they looked at the three of them and smiled wickedly, and Misara knew they had seen the gold. She glanced at Nuriko, and saw that Nuriko knew it too. The man brought their food, and before Nuriko could stop her, Miaka had wolfed it all down, then grabbed her stomach and winced.   
  
"I don't feel so great..." She moaned. Before she could say anything else, the two men appeared next to their table, and tried to steal the money.   
  
Nuriko fended off the attack of one of them, but when the other waved his sword at Miaka, Misara jumped at him. Tamahome's symbol shone on her forehead as she kicked him across the room, straight at...Hotohori? Misara stared in disbelief at the Emperor, ignoring the two men as they ran out the door.   
  
Hotohori ran over to where Miaka lay on the floor. "Miaka!" He cried. "Are you alright?"  
  
"I think the food was poisoned, your Majesty." Nuriko said worriedly.  
  
"No...it wasn't poisoned..." Miaka said groaning. "I just ate too fast..."  
  
Misara buried her face in her hands, and shaking her head, began to laugh.  



	8. Being kidnapped by bandits isn't funny.....

  
After Miaka recovered from her stomachache, the four of them headed out once more. They wandered in the direction of Mt. Reikaku, hoping to find another clue to the whereabouts of the fifth Celestial Warrior. Five hours later, they were tired and hungry, so they stopped in a clearing in the forest and climbed wearily down from their horses. Misara noticed that they were out of water, so she took the liberty of finding a stream and getting some more. Walking through the woods, she looked eagerly for water, and was rewarded a few minutes later by a small brook. After she had drunk her fill, she filled up their water jugs and headed back to the others. Much to her surprise, no one was there...even the horses were gone, along with all their stuff. Trying not to panic, Misara walked around quickly, thinking perhaps she was just lost. However, it was obvious that she wasn't. She took another drink of the water and was about to look around some more when she was hit from behind. The blow was so hard that she was knocked unconscious almost instantly, and the jug shattered as she fell to the ground.   
  
She was crudely awakened much later by a kick in the back. Her eyes flew open and she twisted around to trip whoever had kicked her. Her assailant hopped out of the way, laughing, and she hurt too much to try to see who it was. Her hands were bound behind her back, and she hurt all over. She closed her eyes again, and was given another kick. She was then pulled to her feet by an evil-smelling man, who leered at her. She looked around, only to find that she was in some sort of hideout...from a window, she could see that she was in the mountains. She was quickly distracted by a loud voice behind her. She was spun around to face the person the voice belonged to, and she couldn't help but cringe when she saw him. He was rather short, fat and had tiny little eyes that could barely be seen on his face.   
  
"Hey girly..." He said, sneering at her. "Why don't you tell us where your little friends went?" Misara said nothing, because she didn't know, but she didn't want him knowing that. His face twisted up in rage, and he waved a big metal fan around, cursing at her. She tried not to laugh, because it looked like one of the paper fans she made in elementary school to keep herself cool when it was hot out. For an instant, she wondered if he needed such a big one to cool himself because he was so fat. She must have smiled, because he got even madder and slapped her. Any smiles were long gone, and she glared at him with intense hatred.   
  
She must have given him the reaction he wanted, because he laughed at her, and then slapped her again. I must look awful with all this abuse, she thought sardonically, hoping Hotohori wouldn't see her all beat up.   
  
The fat man was talking to her, and she wasn't listening, which earned her another slap. "Now listen here, girl, cause you're gonna be a hostage for when your friends come back." He said, smiling wickedly. Misara turned her head away and rolled her eyes. No way are these guys that stupid, she thought to herself. But then again, she reconsidered, they probably were. The fat man saw her roll her eyes, and became so enraged that he whacked her over the head with his metal fan, and she fell unconscious again.   
  
  
The five figures were sneaking around the bandit hideout, trying to be quiet. Since Miaka had promised to get Genrou's fan back, Hotohori and Nuriko had reluctantly agreed to help. Genrou and his friend Kouji were leading the way, when all of a sudden, an apparently love-struck young bandit appeared and threw his arms around Hotohori.   
  
"I don't care if you're a man!" He cried. "I love you anyway!" Miaka started snickering, and Hotohori wailed.  
  
"Nuriko, help!!" he cried. Unfortunately, his shriek attracted the attention of the bandits and their leader, Eiken, who was waiting for them to come back.   
  
"Gotcha!" He shouted, waving his fan over his head.   
  
"Give that back!" Miaka yelled. " That fan belongs to Genrou!"   
  
Eiken laughed. "Ya got nothing to trade for it, and I got a hostage to boot!" Nuriko gasped, along with Miaka and Hotohori. In their efforts to rescue Miaka, and then retrieve the fan, they had forgotten all about Misara. Hotohori wanted to kick himself.   
  
"Damn..." Nuriko muttered.   
  
"What's he talking about?" Kouji asked, confused.   
  
Miaka threw up her hands in frustration. "A girl who was traveling with us...she looks just like me, but she's got blue eyes..." She trailed off and glared angrily at Eiken. "Prove that you've got her in the first place, you jerk!" She demanded.   
  
Eiken laughed again, and said, "Oh, I'll prove it all right." He motioned to one of his bandits and soon a girl was dragged forward and dropped on the ground. It was Misara, that was clear, and she was covered in blood and bruises.   
  
"What did you do to her?" Nuriko asked, furious.   
  
"Oh, she's alive, if that's what you're worried about. We just had a fun time with her, that's all." Eiken answered, strutting around next to Misara. "Wake up!" He bellowed, and kicked her in the side. Miaka and Nuriko gasped, and Misara groaned and rolled over onto her stomach. She looked up at Eiken with obvious hatred, and then noticed her friends.   
"Hi guys..." She whispered, trying to smile. She tried to pull herself up from the ground, and after a few moments, was standing precariously, wobbling a bit and dripping blood on the floor.   
  
"Are you alright?" Miaka asked softly.   
  
"Of course she's alright! I take good care of my hostages, don't I, girly?" He said, playing with Misara's hair. She pulled away quickly and almost fell over.   
  
By this time, Genrou was seething. His fists were clenched so tightly that his knuckles were white. Hotohori was no exception. His face was twisted in rage, and his hands gripped his sword tightly. "If you did anything..." he started.  
  
"I've decided!" Eiken announced suddenly. "I won't kill ya." He put his hand on Misara's shoulders and kept her from getting away. He began to laugh again. "I've decided ta let this girl kill ya instead! With Genrou's fan too!"  
  
"But boss...she'll just give the fan to them..." one of the bandits whispered to Eiken.   
  
"Don't worry about it, idiot." He said, kicking the unlucky bandit. "She's hurt too bad to try anything like that."   
  
Miaka stepped forward. "You coward!" She screamed. Eiken shrugged, and placed the fan in Misara's hands.   
  
"Ya gotta say the magic words first, girly. When ya go to fry 'em, ya yell, 'Rekka Shinen' and wave it at 'em." He pushed Misara forward. She took a few unsteady steps, and when she had her balance, she looked at the five of them with incredibly sad eyes.   
  
Hotohori stepped up. "Kill me first, Misara. I won't mind being killed by you."   
  
She shook her head violently. "No!" She cried. "I can't...I can't do it!"   
  
Eiken growled. "I'm getting tired of ya, girly. Do it now or I'll kill you first!" He came up behind her and pushed her forward again. This time, she fell on her hands and knees, still holding on to the fan, as tears dripped off her face.   
  
"No...you don't understand..." She cried. "I can't...I really can't..." Eiken roared and grabbed her braid of long brown hair and pulled hard on it. However, Misara didn't scream, but surprised everyone by spinning around and tripping Eiken. As he thudded to the floor, she stood up and pointed the fan at him, hatred glaring violently in her eyes. He could only stare at her in surprise and stutter.   
  
"I thought...you were...what the hell?" He cried.   
  
Misara smirked. "A trick I learned from a friend. Always pretend to be hurt more than you really are, then attack." She turned to Miaka. "Tamahome taught me that, by the way." Miaka smiled at her, and Misara turned back to Eiken. "Now, you fat...bad person, tell me who this fan really belongs to. It's one of those guys over there, I presume." She said, motioning to Genrou and Kouji. "So which is it? The cute one, or the one with fangs?"   
  
  
After the fan had been returned to Genrou and Eiken had been sent packing, Misara was given a place to sleep and heal her wounds, which were pretty bad anyway, although she ignored them. Unfortunately, Genrou had some bad news for them. It turned out that Tasuki, the fifth Celestial warrior who they had been searching for, was the old leader of the bandits. In other words, he was dead. They were about to give up when one of the bandits mentioned a rumor about someone in a nearby village who could bring the dead back to life. Miaka declared that they had to check it out, so the three left Misara with Genrou and headed out to find the village. As they disappeared down the road, Misara turned to go back to her room to sleep. Suddenly, Genrou was at her side, and taking her arm, was about to escort her to her room when she gasped. She stared up at him, but didn't know what to say. She had felt something when he touched her, but it was gone now.   
  
"Sorry..." she murmured, and went inside her room. Genrou shut the door and walked off down the hallway, glancing over his shoulder curiously.   
  
  
Oh boy...that was lame, wasn't it? At least that part's over, right? Anyway, I'm busily working on the next chapter....so watch for it! P.S. If you got this far and are not yet bored, I commend you! Bravo...and thanks!  



	9. Miaka fights for a fish...she should've ...

  
Miaka was impatient the entire ride back to the bandit hideout. They had met the person who could raise the dead, Miss Shoka, but she had told them that she couldn't leave the village without losing her powers. So the three of them were hurrying back to the bandit's hideout to bring the body of Tasuki to the village. However, they seemed to have lost their way, and were wandering around a graveyard. Nuriko was just about to suggest that they turn around when a hand popped out of the ground and grabbed the leg of his horse. Nuriko was thrown clear, but the horse was being pulled into the ground.  
  
"What the hell is going on??" He shouted, out of breath, as more hands and bodies emerged from underground. They clustered around the three, and Miaka and Hotohori were also thrown from their horse, which ran off in fright.   
  
Hotohori drew his sword and started swinging, but there were too many of them to fight. Just when it seemed hopeless, a voice roared around them.   
  
"Get down on the ground!" It shouted. Nuriko, Miaka and Hotohori dropped quickly and the corpses turned to see who had shouted. That proved to be a fatal hesitation, for the voice shouted again. "Rekka Shinen!"   
  
A wave of fire flew toward the corpses and burned half of them, but the rest were still coming.   
  
This time, the voice was echoed by another when it shouted, "Rekka Shinen!" Hotohori looked up in time to see two dark figures standing on a ledge, outlined by the moon. As they shouted, twin flames shot out from them and devoured the rest of the corpses.   
  
As soon as the danger had passed, Nuriko and Hotohori helped Miaka to her feet as the two figures jumped down and ran forward.   
  
Miaka gasped in delight. "Misara!" she cried, running forward to embrace her. As the two were hugging, the other figure came out of the shadows. It was Genrou, the leader of the bandits.   
  
"I know she isn't completely healed, but she insisted on coming with me." Genrou said to them.   
  
"Why did you come, exactly?" Nuriko asked, suspicious still of the redheaded bandit.   
  
Genrou chuckled, and Misara smiled too. "Haven't you guessed?" he asked. "I'm Tasuki!" He pulled his sleeve up to reveal a shining symbol on his forearm.   
  
The silence was almost deafening, until Nuriko shrieked, "You jerk! Why did you tell us Tasuki was dead?!?"   
  
"Hey, I couldn't just leave the gang!" Tasuki shouted, offended. "I'm the leader now, and I couldn't just run off with ya'll. I almost didn't come at all, until this girl convinced me. Then she begged to come along." He rolled his eyes. "At least I'm here, right?"   
  
"That's not the point!" Nuriko said, still screaming.   
  
Miaka and Misara laughed. "Thanks for convincing him, Misara." Miaka said. Then she frowned and put her hand to her forehead. "I don't feel so good..." She said, wincing.   
  
"Are you alright?" Hotohori asked worriedly.   
  
Miaka smiled. "Of course! It's probably just 'cause I'm tired, that's all. Let's go back to Miss Shoka's village, okay?" The others nodded and they headed off.   
  
  
By the next morning, they were back in Miss Shoka's village, and Miaka wasn't feeling better. In fact, it was clear that she was really sick. She was, however, still hungry, and when she noticed a fish lying on the ground, she pounced on it. Unfortunately, someone else had the same idea, and Miaka got into a fight with a very dirty-looking guy. He grabbed the fish and took off with Miaka on his tail. The four rolled their eyes and rushed after her.   
  
"Miaka!" Misara called desperately. "That fish probably wasn't very clean anyway! You might have gotten sick from eating it off the ground like that! Just let it go!" But it was no use. They followed the two up to a house a little ways from the village. It was very rundown, and when they arrived, panting, in the doorway, they saw that the inside wasn't very different. Miaka was a little upset, since the strange man had fed her fish to his cat, but when Hotohori noticed the different bottles of medicine strewn about, he decided to question this guy.   
  
"Are you a doctor?" He asked, not very tactfully.   
  
"Not anymore." The guy grumbled. "Leave me alone."   
  
"Please, sir, this girl is very sick-can't you help her?" Nuriko pleaded.   
  
"No!" He roared, spinning around and facing them. They all took a giant step backwards. "I want nothing to do with people! Leave me alone!"   
  
They hurried out of his house and down the path back to the village, all a little upset at the strange guy. Misara took another look over her shoulder at the shack, and saw his shadow in the window. He must have seen me, she thought, when the shadow quickly disappeared. He seemed a little familiar, she mused, but decided to forget it. Suddenly, Miaka collapsed, and they crowded around her anxiously. Hotohori felt her forehead.  
  
"Miaka, you're burning up!" He cried, and Nuriko started to wring his hands.  
  
"She might have that disease Miss Shoka told us about!" He said nervously, hopping from one foot to the other. "What're we going to do?"   
  
"We've got to get her back to Miss Shoka's house, and fast!" Hotohori said firmly. The others nodded in agreement, and they hurried into the village to find Miss Shoka.   
  
  
Later that night, in Miss Shoka's house, they crowded around Miaka, who was lying in bed, and definitely sick with the disease. Misara wasn't feeling too hot herself, so she excused herself from them and went to rest in another room. After tossing and turning, she finally fell asleep.   
  
Meanwhile, Miss Shoka had broken some horrible news to the Suzaku warriors. It turned out that although she could raise people from the dead, she could do nothing for the ones who were alive and sick. The only solution she offered was to kill Miaka, and then Miss Shoka would bring her back to life. At first they refused, appalled at the thought of murdering their priestess. Hotohori realized their situation and tried to kill her, but even though she begged him to, he couldn't do it. So the three warriors left her in Shoka's care and went to find that cranky old guy and beg and plead for him to come and heal Miaka.   
  
Misara was having another strange dream. Unfortunately, that cute guy with blue eyes was in it, and all he did in the dream was look at her. He didn't draw the sword that she saw him carrying, and he didn't speak. All he did was stare, and it unnerved her, even in her dream. Suddenly, she saw Tamahome behind him, covered in bloody wounds and bruises. Then the tall guy with the blue eyes raised his hand, closed his eyes, and all of a sudden, Tamahome died.   
  
Misara bolted up in her bed, covered in sweat with tears running down her cheeks. Although she couldn't see it, she could see the red light shining from her forehead. She could feel something, in her heart, which she couldn't explain. However, she knew better than think it was just a bad feeling. It was obvious Tamahome was in trouble, right that minute, and she couldn't do anything about it. She was still recovering from the Eiken episode, and she couldn't think of anyway to get to him, wherever he was.   
  
"I don't even know where Kutou is!" She said out loud, her exclamation echoing through the dark room. Suddenly, she gasped, as a new thought struck her. Chichiri could get to Tamahome...he had this kooky teleporting power that could take her right to Kutou, and Tamahome. Her shoulders slumped. How am I going to get to Chichiri? She thought some more, then wanted to hit herself. She was the Goddess of the Sky, for crying out loud! She uses Chichiri's powers when he's in trouble, so why couldn't she use them when Tamahome was in danger? This seemed very reasonable to her, and she decided that she might as well give it a try, and fast, since her head was starting to swim from the pain. She closed her eyes and concentrated as hard as she could. Although she was unaware of it, both Chichiri's and Tamahome's symbols were glittering, one on her forehead, the other on her knee.   
  
Suddenly, she felt different. Something was different about the air. She opened her eyes, and her hands flew to her mouth to stop herself from screaming. She was in a completely different place, and like the red walls and decorations of Konan, everything here was all one color. Unfortunately, it wasn't red, which meant she wasn't in Konan. It was blue.   



	10. Misara finds a cute, blond hunk...but he...

Misara lifted herself off the ground where she had been sitting and took a deep breath. The pain that was still throbbing in her head wasn't helping her calm down, but she tried to ignore it. Suddenly, she realized that she didn't have any weapons with her, and if she got in trouble, she'd have to use her wits and some of the martial arts moves that Tamahome taught her. She began to get scared, something she definitely didn't need. Taking a few more breaths, she closed her eyes, and thought about Tamahome. Something in her heart told her in which direction he was, so she began sneaking through the palace, quiet but determined.   
  
After a few minutes, her intuition had led her down a few flights of stairs into a dark, sinister-feeling dungeon. Sounds of pain floated in the air around her, one scream in particular. She hurried on, her sneakers making loud sounds on the stone floor, as much as she tried to be quiet. Down one corridor, she could dimly see light from a lantern. She inched forward, listening for that scream again. It had sounded like Tamahome, but she had never heard him cry out, and she hoped she was wrong.   
  
She peered around the corner where the lantern had been shining from and stopped herself from gasping just in time. She saw Tamahome, covered in blood and gashes, lying on the floor, apparently unconscious. She looked up and saw who was standing above him. A girl with short, blond hair was looking at Tamahome in horror, and next to her was the guy from Misara's dreams! Misara was too dumbstruck to scream as she stared at him from the shadows. It had to be the same guy, she thought. He held a whip in his hands, and there was a small smirk on his face as he lifted the whip once more. This time, Misara didn't stop herself from screaming, and the blond man stopped in surprise. Her mind roared in fury as she rushed from her hiding place and struck him with her fists. In a small corner of her mind, a tiny voice cried out. I can't control this anger, it cried out, I can't stop myself! The rest of Misara's mind ignored it and she was about to strike the blond man again when he grabbed her arm. She stopped completely and stared at him with wide eyes. His narrowed when the girl next to him screamed, "Miaka!"   
  
Misara tried to turn to the girl and explain that she wasn't Miaka, but apparently, the blond guy had heard enough. He twisted her arm so quickly that it snapped, and the sound echoed through the halls. Too stunned by his action to feel any pain, Misara looked at him again, her mouth open in shock, and all her anger gone. He dropped her arm and it flopped uselessly by her side.   
  
"Miaka?" She heard quietly, and she looked down at Tamahome. He had lifted his head slightly and was trying to look at her.   
  
She bent down quickly and said, "No, Tamahome. It's Misara..." she trailed off as he closed his eyes and sighed.   
  
"I'm glad..." he whispered. "You shouldn't have come, Misara."  
  
She burst out in surprise. "Of course I should have come, stupid! This guy was going to kill you!" She choked back tears of anger. "I HAD to come! You know that!"  
  
"No..." he murmured. "You have a mind of your own, don't you?" His eyes opened again as he looked at her.   
  
"Of course I have a mind of my own! But when it comes to you and the others, I can't use it!" She shrieked. "When you're in trouble, I have to come and help! My body won't let me ignore you! Even if I hated you with all my heart, I'd have to come!" She started to cry.   
  
"Is that why you came?" He asked. "Because your body made you, or because you wanted to?"   
  
She stopped abruptly. "Because my body made me...and partly because I wanted to." She finished. "I know how much you and Miaka love each other...and you're also my friend..."   
  
He cut her off. "Good."   
  
"What do you mean by that?" She asked, confused.  
  
"I'm glad that you came because you wanted to, and not because it was your duty." He looked as though he was going to say something else, but didn't have the energy. Misara put her hand on his shoulder, and soon he continued. "I'd tell you to look after Miaka, but I know you're going to do that anyway, and she has Hotohori and Nuriko to look after her right now. But you don't have anyone...so look after yourself, because I can't."   
  
Misara's eyes narrowed. "Tamahome, I'm getting you out of here right now." Her eyes closed to concentrate but Tamahome stopped her.   
  
"I promised I would stay..." He said.  
  
"I don't care!" She cried.   
  
"I promised..." He closed his eyes again. "Just go, Misara. I don't want Nakago to hurt you..." He trailed off as he slipped into unconsciousness again.   
  
Misara stood. "Nakago?" She said, confused.   
  
"I am Nakago." A voice said behind her, and she spun around quickly. It was that tall blond guy, and he was looking at her very curiously.   
  
Misara turned to the girl. "You're Yui, right?"   
  
The girl gasped in surprise. "How did you know my name?"   
  
Misara didn't answer her. "Where's Taylor? Isn't she with you?"   
  
Yui's eyes widened. "Well, she's ..."   
  
Nakago cut her off. "Not here. Misara's anger flared at the obvious lie, but he raised his hand before she could speak. "Tamahome told you to go before I hurt you. I think you'd better listen to him, Misara." He smirked again.   
  
Misara's eyes narrowed, then she turned on her heel and began walking away. They didn't follow her and soon she found a deserted place where she could concentrate and leave. Suddenly, the pain from her broken arm began to grow sharper. I've got to get back to the others, she thought, her mind reeling from the pain. I'll have to come back for Taylor later...  
  
She thought about that guy. What was his name? Nakago? She shook the ominous feeling out of her heart and tried to concentrate on Miaka, Nuriko and Hotohori. As she disappeared into a glaring red light, her last thought in Kutou was about Nakago. She suddenly realized that she liked the way he had said her name...  
  
  
OoooOOOooohhh...scary! Not really, huh? I thought not. Anyway, I couldn't decide whether she liked or hated Nakago, so I suppose "she" hasn't decided yet. Poor Tamahome...well....nah, I could care less. I haven't figured out what to do with Taylor, so that's why Misara hasn't seen her yet. The way this is going, this is going to be one looooong series. For those of you who have reviewed my story, I love you! You make me actually want to continue this dumb story...so thank you thank you thank you!! I suppose I'll go start on chapter 11 now...thanks for reading this far! I commend you!  
  



	11. 

Unfortunately, the pain in Misara's arm caused her to go a little out of her way when she tried to teleport. Perhaps 'a little' is an exaggeration. She collapsed as soon as she came out of the red light, and didn't get a chance to see what was around her. When she woke again, she was in a bed...her bed at the royal palace of Konan, in fact. Her arm had been mended, but it still hurt to move it much. She was about to climb out of bed when the door opened and Hotohori walked in. Misara was speechless as she stared at him.   
  
"How...how did you get here?" She finally blurted out. Hotohori glanced around suspiciously and closed the door behind him. Suddenly, Misara heard a 'poof' and saw a bright flash of light. When she uncovered her eyes, she saw Chichiri standing in front of her, smiling. "Chichiri!" She cried happily, and bounded out of bed to hug him. "Is this what you've been doing the whole time?" She asked, and he laughed.  
  
"Hotohori wanted so much to go with Miaka, Nuriko, and yourself, so I told him I'd sort of...sit in for a while. See?" He snapped his fingers, and the special effects went off again. When Misara looked up, she was hugging Hotohori. Startled by that fact, she quickly moved away, and when Chichiri reappeared, he had a confused look on his face.   
  
Misara waved her hand, trying to get him to ignore her action. "Never mind." Suddenly, she remembered something. She took Chichiri's hands and made him sit with her on the bed, her face very puzzled.   
  
"When I tried to teleport back to Miaka and the others from Kutou, I came here instead. Do you know why?" She asked.  
  
Chichiri looked at her with surprise. "What were you doing in Kutou without the others there in the first place, no da?"   
  
Misara realized her error and stumbled over her words. "I...well...I was...talking to...Tamahome..." She trailed off, hoping that would satisfy him.   
  
It obviously didn't, but he chose to let it go. He shrugged his shoulders at her. "I have no idea why you'd get off course like that, no da. I suggest you ask Taitskun about it, but that's up to you, of course." He stood and patted her head. Turning back into Hotohori, he headed for the door. "Get some rest, and you can try again tomorrow." He closed the door firmly behind him. Misara stared in bewilderment, then shrugged. She climbed back into bed as she realized that she did need some more rest, and that sleep would feel good. She closed her eyes, and almost instantly fell asleep.   
  
Outside her door, Chichiri stood silently, still looking like Hotohori. He moved his hands and muttered some words for a sleeping spell, then opened his worried eyes and walked back to his throne room.   
  
  
Later that night, Misara was having a very peculiar dream. She was walking through the shrine of Suzaku, dressed in very expensive-looking clothes and feeling a bit nervous. Her subconscious wondered why she was nervous, but was interrupted by a loud noise up ahead. It sounded like a bird call, but for the life of her, Misara couldn't identify it. Not that she was a bird expert or anything, she reminded herself. She kept walking until she reached the statue of Suzaku. Standing next to it was a tall man, and Misara hesitated for a moment before continuing forward. His eyes were closed, and he had red hair, not like Tasuki's, whose was more orange. A red symbol shone on his forehead, and his outfit was unlike anything she had ever seen. He opened his eyes and looked at her in surprise, as if he weren't expecting her. Then his eyes became sad, and he came forward and weakly held out his hand for her to take. Misara hesitated again, but her instincts told her to go with him. She reached for him, but when she clasped his hand, she almost let go with shock. It was so cold, it almost hurt to hold it, but she held on tightly as he led her slowly, as if he were very tired, through the shrine to a large fire. There he stopped, and let go of her hand. Casting one last glance at her, he walked into the fire, and Misara screamed in horror along with him, as he was burned alive.   
  
Suddenly, he stopped screaming, and Misara couldn't see him anymore. The fire unexpectedly died out in an instant, and in the pile of ashes, Misara saw a child. A baby, actually, who was crying very loudly, and standing around the baby were eight dark figures, who were also weeping.   
  
All of a sudden, Misara understood three things. The first thing was that the man had been Suzaku, and Suzaku was a phoenix who, according to myth, was reborn from the ashes after it burned itself. The second thing was that the eight people surrounding the baby were the Suzaku Seven and the Priestess, just before the summoning ceremony for Suzaku. The last thing came as a huge shock to her when she realized that SHE was the one who had to be burned alive like that in order for the Priestess to summon Suzaku.   
  
As soon as she grasped that, she turned and ran. She wasn't sure where she was going, she just wanted to get away. As she ran, she saw through her tears the blurry faces of the Suzaku Seven, begging her to stay. She kept on running, and passed them all by, ignoring their cries. Suddenly, she heard a voice as she was running. It sounded like Nakago's voice, but it was kind this time.   
  
"I won't let them hurt you..." the voice said, echoing around her. "I'll keep you from this fate..." The cries of the Suzaku Seven grew louder but she didn't stop.   
The voice floated around her mind. "I'll save you, Misara...I'll keep you from this horrible fate...trust me...just trust me..."   
  
Misara's mind spun as she shrieked, "Please!! Don't let them hurt me!"  
  
"Trust me..." the voice echoed again.  
  
"I will...I do!" She cried again. Suddenly, the outline of Nakago appeared far ahead of her, and she ran with all her strength to catch him. When she got closer, he became clearer and she could see that his arms were reaching toward her. She threw out her arms and an instant before she was in his, everything froze around her and she could see herself burning in that fire. With her last ounce of strength, she threw herself at him.   
  
As they embraced, he whispered into her ear, "I won't let them hurt you..." and suddenly, the entire world was shattered into a thousand pieces.   
  
  
Misara bolted upright in her bed, ignoring the sudden pain in her arm as her hands flew to her mouth.   
What have I done? She thought. What in the world have I done?  
  
  
The next morning, Chichiri came into Misara's room, and to his surprise, he found her sitting at her table, not sleeping as he expected. She looked up when he walked in the door, then turned back around and continued to stare at the wall.   
  
"Is there something wrong, Misara?" He asked. She shook her head violently, but didn't speak. He scratched his head in confusion and stood uncomfortably for a few moments. Suddenly, she spoke.  
  
"Can you help me get back to the others?" She asked him. "I think it's my broken arm that caused me to become distracted and brought me here." She sighed. "If you helped me out, I'd get back to them safely, without having to worry about ending up somewhere else." Chichiri nodded in agreement. "Besides," she added, "I'm worried about them."   
  
Chichiri nodded again, and Misara stood and crossed the room over to him.   
  
"Thank you." She said softly, closing her eyes and concentrating on the others. He placed his hands on both her shoulders and when his symbol appeared on both of their left knees, she disappeared in a flash of red light.   
  
  
When Misara appeared again, she found herself in Hotohori's arms. He and the others had been resting in a forest clearing. Misara saw that he was glad to see her, but she fainted out of exhaustion before he could speak.   
  
A few moments later, she woke once more, embarrassed for fainting but still in Hotohori's arms. Her arm was completely healed, which shocked her speechless until he explained that Mitsukake had healed it. She then looked around and found Miaka, Nuriko and Tasuki grinning down at her. Next to them was the old man from the shack who had refused to heal Miaka! When they told her the tragic story, Misara tried not to cry, but couldn't stop herself. They then told her that they were looking for the last Suzaku warrior, Chiriko, and then they could summon Suzaku. Misara was happy for them, because they looked so hopeful, but she remembered the painful dream and privately wished that they wouldn't summon Suzaku very soon. Of course, she didn't say this to Miaka, who looked dreamy-eyed at the idea of seeing Tamahome again. For some strange reason, they didn't ask her where she had gone, and for this Misara was more than glad, because she didn't really want to talk about it. But it was still a little odd, she thought.   
  
When Misara felt well enough to walk, they headed out once more to look for Chiriko. The sun was about to set when they came upon a village that Miaka and Nuriko recognized as Tamahome's. By coincidence, Tamahome's younger brother was running by, looking for a doctor for his father, who was very sick. Mitsukake managed to heal him, and out of immense gratitude, Tamahome's family put them up for the night. Just before Misara went to bed, she sat outside under a tree and looked at the stars. After a few minutes, Miaka joined her.  
  
"How're you feeling?" She asked Misara.  
  
"I'm really really tired...but I just wanted to have a look at the stars before I went to bed." Misara answered.   
  
"I can't wait until we find the last warrior." Miaka said for the millionth time.   
  
Misara laughed. "I know, I know...so you can see Tamahome again, huh?" Miaka nodded sheepishly.   
  
Misara sighed. "You really love him, don't you?"  
  
Miaka nodded again, more enthusiastically this time. "I do! I really love him!"   
  
"Must be nice to have him love you back, right?"  
Miaka gave her a strange look. "Well...yeah..." She said, confused. "You like Hotohori, don't you?" She asked, not very tactfully.   
  
Misara's eyes widened in shock at the mention of Hotohori. "Well...I think he's really nice..." She said, trying to avoid the subject. Miaka snorted, and Misara couldn't stop herself from laughing.   
  
"Stop that!" Miaka cried. "You know what I meant! I didn't ask you whether you thought he was nice or not! You like him! I can tell!!!"  
  
"I don't have any idea what you're talking about!" Misara cried, not very convincingly. Miaka laughed.  
  
"Whatever..." She said, standing up. "Let's go to bed, okay?"   
  
"Good." Misara said, glad to drop the subject.   
  
"I still think you're in love with Hotohori!" Miaka said loudly, then ran toward the house. Misara screeched in mock dismay and ran after her, both of them laughing all the way.  
  
  
  
  
  
Well, okay. That's that for chapter 11. I tried to make that one longer, since the last chapter was REALLY short...hope you liked it. And for all those who are worried, Misara still likes Hotohori. A lot. Were any of you freaked out by that dream? I had no intention of it turning out that way, but now I kind of liked it. And don't worry (yet) about Nakago and Misara getting together, either. We all know he's a liar, right? Right. He's still a liar in this story...but maybe not about some things....heh heh....is the suspense killing you?  



	12. Chiriko appears...but Misara isn't convi...

Later that night, Misara lay in her makeshift bed, her eyes wide open, while the others slept. She was too afraid to go to sleep after her last dream. She didn't know how late it was when she heard Miaka get out of bed, muttering something about a flute. She didn't follow Miaka, but instead rolled over and tried to think about something besides her dream. It wasn't working very well, and she was getting frustrated when she heard Miaka scream. She sat up and spun around just in time to see Hotohori and Tasuki run out the door. Nuriko slept on, oblivious to the noise, and she didn't see Mitsukake anywhere. She tried to get out of bed, but her legs were all tangled in her sheets and it took her a few moments to pull her legs free. By the time she had gotten out of bed, Miaka's screams had faded off into the distance. Misara rushed outside and followed the faint sounds of Miaka, which weren't hard to distinguish anyway. She ran as fast as she could, which wasn't fast at all, but she managed to catch up to the others just in time to see the bats attack.  
  
Hold on a second! She thought, as she ducked behind a tree. Bats don't attack people! Before she could jump in the fray, a peculiar sound cut into the screeching off the bats. She paused, knowing she had heard this sound before. It had sounded like something from a dream...she gasped out loud. She HAD heard this before, in the dream she had last night! She vaguely remembered hearing something in the background as she was running toward Nakago, and it sounded like this! She peeked out from behind the tree again and saw that the bats were crashing into the trees around Miaka, Hotohori and Tasuki. Then she heard another scream, and a man dressed in black dropped out of a nearby tree, obviously dead, but from who knows what. Misara ran forward to her friends, but they didn't notice her as they looked off into the trees. She turned her head and saw a boy standing there, a long stick in his hand and looking very battered. He stepped forward weakly.   
  
"I used my flute to distract the bats..." He said, then collapsed onto the ground. Miaka ran over to him, followed quickly by Hotohori and Tasuki, and more slowly by Misara, who gave the boy a suspicious look. She didn't trust him.   
  
He told them that the Kutou army had attacked his village, and he was the only one left alive. From a tear in his clothing, a red symbol was visible. Miaka gasped and pointed to it. "What is this?" She asked, excitedly.  
  
"It's...just a symbol..." he said. "Don't pay any attention to it."  
  
"Who are you?" Hotohori asked, almost as excited as Miaka.   
  
"My name is Chiriko. I'm one of the Suzaku Seven. That's what the symbol is for, miss." He said to Miaka, who all but jumped up and down.   
  
"We found him!" She cried, over and over again, shaking Hotohori's shoulder. Suddenly, she noticed Misara standing behind them and ran over and hugged her. "We found the last one, Misara! Isn't that great?" She asked breathlessly.   
  
Misara nodded in agreement, but continued to look at Chiriko with suspicion.   
  
"You can touch his symbol now, right? Unless you're too tired, of course. Then your job will be done, won't it? 'Cause we can summon Suzaku and go home!" She pushed Misara at Chiriko. "Go ahead!"   
  
Misara sidestepped Chiriko and turned back in the direction of the house. She kept on walking, ignoring their cries of surprise. She didn't look back, but after a few seconds, she heard footsteps catching up with her. A hand touched her shoulder and she stopped, out of sight and earshot of the others, and turned around angrily. About to yell at whoever it was, she stopped when she saw Tasuki. She hadn't really known him that long, but he was still one of "them" and her need to scream was so great, she wondered why she had stopped. Before she could speak he put his hand over her mouth.   
  
"Not a word until you hear me out, ya hear?" He said, although it was more of an order. She narrowed her eyes at him but didn't speak. He sighed. "I know how you feel, Misara." She opened her mouth to say something sarcastic, but he gave her a hard look and continued. "It's kind of weird how Chiriko just showed up like this, I know. But you didn't have to do that."   
  
This time, she did speak. "You don't understand," She said loudly, "you don't know what it's like to be me and to see the things I see and have the dreams I do and know the things I know and can't tell you about..." She trailed off, about to cry.   
  
"Whoa whoa whoa...hold on a second!" He looked scared at the sight of her oncoming tears. "I didn't mean to upset ya, but ya gotta calm down!" His hands flopped around uselessly and he hopped from foot to foot, unsure of what to do.   
  
Misara swallowed and forced her tears back, not because he told her to calm down but because she didn't want to cry in front of him. She cleared her throat and spoke again. "If you had any idea of what it was like to be me, you wouldn't make me out to be the bad guy here. If you had just the tiniest-" She was cut off by surprise when he threw his arms around her and held her tightly.   
  
"You don't know what it's like to stand by and watch you suffer, as much as you try to hide it. We all have to stand by and see you try to act cheerful like Miaka. You just can't do it!" He cried. "Stop being so selfish and tell us what's bothering you."   
  
She really started to cry this time. "I can't!" She wailed, as the tears ran down her face. He unexpectedly let go of her.   
  
"I'm sorry to hear that." He said flatly. "Especially from you, Misara." With that, he turned and walked away.   
  
Misara stood there, looking at his back as he walked farther and farther away, shaking her head in dismay and disbelief.   
  
  
  
  
The next morning, the group was packing up their stuff to head back to the palace. They had a slight problem when Tamahome's youngest sister, Yuiren, began to cry when she saw that Miaka was leaving. Suddenly, Chiriko began to play a pretty song on his flute, and she fell asleep almost instantly. Misara's eyes narrowed, but no one noticed as Tasuki yelled at Chiriko for brainwashing the little girl.   
  
As the group took off down the road, they realized that they weren't very far from the palace, and in about four hours, they walked through the gates. Suddenly, Chichiri popped out of nowhere, frightening Tasuki. Miaka introduced him to the other warriors, and then Mitsukake noticed that Hotohori had disappeared.   
  
Nuriko laughed. "Haven't you guessed?" He asked. "He's-"  
  
"That's enough, Nuriko." Hotohori's voice boomed out as the warriors, Miaka and Misara turned to see him descend the steps nearby, decked out in full emperor regalia. Mitsukake, Chiriko and Tasuki just stared, their mouths hanging open. Miaka and Nuriko laughed, and Misara cracked a tiny smile. Only a tiny one, because most of her attention was not on them, but Hotohori. He looks really good in that hat, she mused, then shook her head for thinking about him again.   
  
Later that evening, after dinner, they talked about their next plan of action. Miaka was anxious to get Tamahome back, that was obvious. Misara pulled her scroll out by Chichiri's request and they read it again, to see if they had missed anything and if anything had been written in it since they had been gone. Misara had forgotten it when they left to search for the remaining warriors. She had also left behind her bow and arrows that Hotohori had made for her, but that wasn't on accident. Unfortunately, there was nothing else in the scroll, and so they concentrated their efforts on retrieving Tamahome from Kutou.   
  
Misara felt extremely tired, so she left them to their planning and headed to her room. As she left the room, a backward glance caught the eye of Tasuki, who looked at her emotionlessly before turning away. Agitated, she shook her head in disgust and half-slammed the door behind her. Instead of going to her room, however, she stalked off in the direction of the shrine. The fire was still burning in there, and she briefly wondered who was in charge of keeping it lit. She walked up to the statue, the whole reason for her coming here instead of sleeping. Sure enough, her ring was still there. She had almost forgotten about it, but when she saw the scroll again, she remembered what she was doing here and that she had to get home as fast as possible. She thought about trying to pull her ring out again, but quickly dismissed the thought. She sat down in front of the statue and looked up at it. After a few minutes, she spoke.   
  
"Why'd you have to go and pick me? And what is this new stuff about jumping into a fire? I didn't see any contract of job requirements stating that I had to burn myself alive..." She rolled her eyes for talking to herself, but continued. "I mean, you didn't really have to drag Taylor into this, did you? And that Nakago fellow, he just makes my job all the more difficult." She gave the statue a hard look. "You're not helping, you know." Another moment of silence and Misara shook her head again, then yawned. She put her elbows on the steps leading to the statue and continued talking to herself.   
  
  
  
Much later that night, Tasuki was wandering worriedly around the palace. Everyone else had gone to sleep, but he had gone to check on Misara. When he opened the door to her room, he saw that she wasn't in bed, and so far he couldn't find her anywhere. He finally headed up the steps to the palace shrine to Suzaku. Peeking around the door, he saw Misara asleep on the steps in front of a huge statue of the phoenix. Sighing with exasperation, he walked over to her and picked her up, carrying her back to her room. As he left her in her bed, he thought about how much trouble she had been since he had met her. Not as much as Miaka, he noted, but still...he thought, isn't she supposed to be protecting me? I'm the one doing all the protecting around here. As he closed the door, he got one last look at her. Well, he reconsidered, I guess I don't mind it that much...she is kind of cute...  
  
  
  
  
  
I'm done I'm done I'm done!!! Thank goodness! I know this one took extra long, but I didn't start on it until a few days ago. I have a good reason, though! I had to take the college board AP US History exam on Friday, and I think I lost a few hundred brain cells just trying to remember the answers. It should go faster, now that spring sports are almost over and only 15 1/2 more days of school! Yay!!! Anyway, new plot twist here...Ooooeeeeeooooo...yeah, whatever, you're saying. It should come as no surprise to you, since Tasuki IS my favorite character...or maybe it should because you didn't know that...oh well. Be prepared, the next chapter is gonna be good! I promise! (Like the previous aren't good, right?)  



	13. Flute-boy isn't who he says he is...and ...

  
When Misara woke again, it was late morning and everyone else was already awake. After talking to Miaka, she learned that the attempt to free Tamahome was that very night. Apparently, only Chichiri and Miaka were going. No one else looked very happy about that, but there was not much that could be done about it. If too many people went, they would be more likely to get caught. After dinner that evening, while Miaka and Chichiri were getting ready to go, Misara got a strange feeling in her stomach. She shook off the premonition and tried to help the best she could, but she couldn't forget about it.   
  
Her face must have showed some of her worry, because Tasuki came up to her and asked, "Is anything wrong, Misara?" She looked at him quickly, then shook her head and turned away. He frowned and turned his attention elsewhere, but kept an eye on her.   
  
  
It was almost time for them to leave, and Miaka was hungry. Misara was hurrying to the kitchen for something for Miaka to eat when it hit her. A pain so intense inside her head that she couldn't even breathe. She collapsed onto the floor, gasping for air. It passed quickly, and when she was able to stand, she grasped the railing and thought. She knew it had something to do with Tamahome but she couldn't figure out what it was. Everything was still hazy, and she was still dazed. As she took some food and headed back to the others, her eyes grew wider. It could be her imagination, she thought, but she could feel him anymore. It was hard to explain, even to herself, but ever since she had touched his symbol, it was like...a part of her belonged to him, and now she couldn't feel that part. This was too much of a bad omen for her to ignore, but she wasn't about to bring it up and worry Miaka. Yes, she decided. That was the most important thing, not to upset Miaka. Besides, she reasoned, it wasn't something she could explain to them.  
  
Soon they were ready to go. It was getting late, and they had promised to meet Tamahome at midnight. Chichiri spread his cape-thing (Misara had yet to figure out what it was) on the ground and stepped on it. Suddenly, Tasuki came forward.   
  
"I'm goin' with y'all." He announced, to the surprise of everyone.   
  
Chichiri shook his head. "I don't think that's a good idea, no da. Too many people an-"   
  
Tasuki cut him off. "I guess I'll have to eat these yummy buns all by myself then." He whimpered, a bun appearing in his hand from nowhere.   
  
Miaka jumped on Chichiri. "Oh, let the poor guy go!" She cried.   
  
"Okay, okay!" Chichiri gave in, and Tasuki tossed a bun to Miaka, who scarfed it. The three of them stood on Chichiri's cape and Miaka waved goodbye, crumbs still on her face. Misara hid a smile as Chichiri made a few motions with his hands and they disappeared.   
  
  
  
Later that night, the remainder of the group sat in one of Hotohori's rooms. Chiriko was playing his flute, and Nuriko was about to hit him. It seemed that the only people who could stand Chiriko's flute was Hotohori and Miaka. Mitsukake didn't seemed to be annoyed by anything, and likewise with Chichiri. Misara walked in the door, a tray of drinks in her hands.   
  
"Chiriko," she said, stopping in her tracks and sighing in exasperation. "you have to put that thing down to drink something, you know."   
  
Sheepishly, Chiriko stopped playing and put his flute away. "Hey Misara," Nuriko said suddenly, "you haven't touched Chiriko's symbol yet, have you?"   
  
Surprised, Misara shook her head. "I guess not..." she said.   
  
Chiriko looked confused. "What do you mean?" He asked nervously.   
  
Nuriko rolled his eyes at Chiriko. "She's got to touch your symbol, you know, your symbol of Suzaku. For protection purposes only, so don't get any ideas." He winked at Misara, who rolled her eyes. "By the way, Chiriko, how old are you?" Nuriko asked.   
  
"I'm fifteen..." he said, still looking nervous.   
  
Misara laughed. "Too young for me, Nuriko, so don't YOU get any ideas." Nuriko looked appalled, then pushed Misara at Chiriko.   
  
"Go on, young'uns. Let's get this over with, and then once Tamahome gets back, we can summon Suzaku." He said.   
  
"Hold on..." Chiriko held his hands up. "Isn't this kind of...private?"   
  
Misara shrugged her shoulders at him. "If you want, I guess..." she looked curiously at him. "We can go to your room then." She turned on her heel and headed out the door, not looking back at Chiriko. He followed her hesitantly, with a look on his face that reminded Nuriko of a pig being led to slaughter.   
  
  
  
Chiriko closed the door behind him. Misara stood by the table, waiting impatiently for him. He pulled the collar of his shirt to one side where a blue symbol flashed. Misara gasped in surprise when she saw it, but before she could do anything else, Chiriko backhanded her and she fell. As she lay on the floor, her eyes wide and her mouth about to scream, he pinned her to the ground and put his elbow in her throat, causing her to cry out in pain. His other hand covered her mouth quickly.   
  
"If you say or do anything..." he started, his eyes full of fury. "I swear I'll kill you."   
  
Misara choked and gasped some more before she rasped, "Okay!" He let go of her and she rolled over, hand on her throat, wheezing. He pulled her to her feet, and she glared at him hatefully.   
  
Once she could speak, she lashed out at him. "I knew there was something suspicious with you! How dare you pretend to be our friend! You're nothing but a back-stabbing villain and I'll kill you before you hurt any of my friends!" She swung at him but he dodged it easily, catching her arm. He made her look at him, and this time, his eyes were sad.  
  
"Yes, I know what I'm doing is wrong...but it's not my fault!" He argued. "Just listen to what I have to say, please?"   
  
"No!" She cried, trying to pull herself free. "I'm going to kill you first!"  
  
"Nakago made me do it! Please, it's wasn't my idea and I never meant to hurt any of you, but it was all Nakago's plan! You have to believe me!" He shouted over her protests.   
  
As soon as she heard Nakago's name, she stopped and stared at him. "Nakago?" She asked timidly. "It was his idea?"   
  
He nodded, relieved that she had stopped, and she sat down in a chair, dazed.   
  
"Why?" was all she could say. Chiriko shrugged.   
  
"I don't know, but...well...I do know that your friends are in danger now. You've got to help them..." he trailed off.   
  
Misara stood and looked at him angrily. "How do I know you're not lying again?"   
  
His eyes narrowed. "You just have to trust me, okay?"   
  
She paused, then sighed in frustration. "I guess I don't have any choice, do I?" She headed for the door, then turned back to him. "So your name isn't Chiriko, is it?"  
  
He looked at the floor. "I am Amiboshi, one of the Seiryu Seven." He said softly. "I'm not proud of that title either." He added, looking at her quickly.   
  
Misara glared at him. "Whatever." She said as she turned to leave.   
  
  
  
Minutes later, Misara was back in Kutou. It had taken quite an effort to get there. One miscalculated shot had landed her in Kouji's bed back at the bandit hideout. A surprised Kouji could only gape at her as she quickly apologized and vanished again. Concentrating her mind on Chichiri, she had finally gotten to the royal palace, but neither he, Tasuki or Miaka were to be seen. She decided to wander around a while. As she crept through the palace, she wondered vaguely if her powers were weakening. She didn't feel as well as she used to, and the teleporting wasn't getting better by practicing. The smell of food wafted through the air to her, and she realized that she was hungry. Dodging guards, she quickly found the room where the food was. Closing the door behind her, she strained to see in the dark room. Suddenly, a lantern was lit and she shielded her eyes from the unexpected brightness. When her eyes had readjusted, she saw food sitting on a table, and seated at that table was Nakago. Too stunned for words, she could only stare at him. He motioned her to sit, and she did, almost mechanically.   
  
"How's your arm doing?" He asked sarcastically.   
  
That jolted her back to reality. "You...you lying sneaky...whatever you are!" She cried. "How dare you send Amiboshi to hurt my friends!"   
  
He chuckled, sending her into a fury. "Don't lose your temper, Miss Goddess. It's not ladylike." He laughed again, and she stood, about to hit him. He turned from laughing to angry in almost an instant. "Sit down!" He ordered.   
  
Her eyes narrowed, but she slowly sat back down. He pushed one of the plates in front of her. "Hungry?" He asked, laughing again.   
  
"No thank you." She forced the words out.   
  
"Come on, eat! I don't want you thinking I'm not hospitable." He laughed again.   
  
She took a fork and stabbed something on her plate, brought it to her lips and chewed it without ever taking her eyes off him. He seemed to be smiling more now that she had eaten. All of a sudden, she felt very strange, and almost choked on her food. She fell off her chair and for the second time that night, lay gasping on the floor. His shadow fell over her, and he laughed again. She decided right then and there that she didn't like his laugh at all, but was interrupted in her thoughts by him when he grabbed her arm and pulled her to her feet.   
  
"You'll feel a little strange for a while, I expect." He said, still grinning at her.   
  
"What are you talking about?" She asked furiously.  
  
"Just something I slipped into your food. It won't harm you, at least not very much, but it will make you a little more willing to cooperate. It also affects your subconscious. For you, specifically, the part of you that knows when your precious Suzaku warriors are in trouble. So now you won't know, and won't be able to interfere." He smirked at her as she stared up at his face, absolutely distressed but unable to think clearly about running away.   
  
"And now for the kicker, eh?" He said. "Do you happen to remember a dream you had recently about me, Misara?" From the way her eyes widened it was obvious she did, and he continued. "Well, it's rather difficult to explain. As far as you know, only one god can call the Goddess of the Sky, and there can only be one of her in this world at a time. But I am blessed to be one of the Seiryu Seven, and therefore, a servant of the all-mighty Seiryu. I asked him to 'steal' you from the Suzaku Seven for me, but even he could not do that. So we had to compromise, and you had to seal the deal. The dream I showed you gave you the option of becoming the Goddess for the Seiryu Seven as well, and you took it by running away from them and into my arms. It was so sweet, don't you think?" She was so shocked that she couldn't reply, so he finished his speech. "And now it's time for you to become my protector. What do you say, Misara? It'll be fun! You'll stay with me as long as I live and I'll always have you as my pretty little bodyguard, always willing to die for me and do anything I ask. Sounds rather nice, doesn't it?" He didn't wait for her answer as he took her hand. A bright blue symbol flashed on his forehead, and before she could react, he had put her hand to it. The same symbol appeared on her forehead, and she felt the same weakness she had felt with the others but she was too drugged to keep from fainting this time.   
  
Nakago picked her up effortlessly. "Let's go see how your little friends are doing, shall we? I expect the fighting should be starting about now." He carried her out of the room, closing the door behind him with his foot and walking across the palace to a tower where a blond-haired girl stood waiting.   
  
"Nakago, what's going on?" She asked shrilly. He leaned over the edge of the tower and saw the two Suzaku warriors standing below with their priestess, about to be attacked by an old friend.   
  
"Just as I thought." He said, smiling once more. "This ought to be good."   
  
  
  
Well, maybe that wasn't as good as I had promised...but scary to me nonetheless. Ah, poor Hotohori has more than one rival in love, eh? Of course, he still doesn't care about anyone but Miaka, mores the pity. Don't worry though. As much as Nakago will end up liking Misara, she won't go for him. Dark-haired bishonen are best, right?  



	14. Misara finds Taylor...but gets left behi...

Misara's eyes flickered open and as she looked around, she couldn't remember where she was. Suddenly, she noticed that she was being carried, and by Nakago of all people! She pushed herself out of his arms and promptly fell onto the ground, her legs too weak to hold her up. Nakago bent down to help her up, but she ignored his outstretched hand and pulled herself up. She didn't feel as drugged as she had before, but something was still not right. As she glared at Nakago, her mind raced for an answer, but she could give herself none. Then she noticed Yui standing behind Nakago, watching something below. Misara looked down and saw that they were in some sort of tower, high enough off the ground to make Misara sick. Then something else caught her attention. Standing below them, under a tree, were four figures. She strained her eyes to see who they were, and sighed in relief when she saw Miaka, Chichiri and Tasuki standing with Tamahome.   
  
Thank goodness they found him, she thought. I was afraid that something had gone wrong...now we can all go home. She half-turned to leave when a sudden movement below caught her eye. Tasuki had attacked Tamahome! Misara leaned over the railing, her mouth open in astonishment. Tamahome was fighting back as well...but for the life of her, Misara couldn't hear what they were saying. Suddenly, she realized something else. She couldn't feel them...like she did when one of them was in trouble. She always felt it, but this time was different. She did feel something coming from Tasuki, but only if she strained to feel it. From Tamahome...there was nothing. She was interrupted in her wonderings by Tasuki flying through the air and slamming into the tree, the loud crack reverberating around her. Although she didn't feel his pain, her anger flared as usual. She spun around and ran toward the tower steps, dodging Nakago's hand that reached out to grab her. She ran as fast as she could down the steps and ran into the courtyard. Miaka and Chichiri were nowhere to be seen and it was obvious that Tasuki was losing the fight. Suddenly, Nakago appeared in front of Misara. Taken aback by his sudden appearance, she hesitated for a brief instant, then flew past him and toward her friends.  
  
"Tamahome!" She cried loudly. He spun around, surprised, and Tasuki jumped on him from behind, proceeding to pound on him again. "NO!" She screamed again, throwing her arms around Tasuki and pulling him off Tamahome.   
  
"What the hell are you doing?!?" Tasuki screeched, trying to wrestle himself from her grasp.   
  
"That's Tamahome!" She yelled. "One of the Suzaku Seven! You can't hurt him!"   
  
Tasuki finally pushed her away. "I don't care! He's trying to kill Miaka! The real Tamahome wouldn't do that!"   
  
Misara stopped in her tracks and stared at Tasuki. "What...what do you mean?" Before Tasuki could answer her, Tamahome came out of nowhere and hit him, knocking him to the ground, unconscious. Misara screamed again. "Tamahome! What are you doing?!?" She took a few hesitating steps toward him. She was getting a few weird feeling in her stomach. He smiled evilly at her and she quickly backed away. Nakago appeared at Tamahome's side at the same time a red light shone from the bushes nearby. A giant red orb floated next to her, and inside were Miaka and Chichiri. A flash of red light and Tasuki disappeared from the ground and reappeared inside the orb.   
  
Suddenly, Miaka caught Misara's eye. "Misara! What are you doing here?" She gasped. Chichiri looked up and gasped too.   
  
"Come on, Misara! We have to go!" He yelled, motioning for her to get inside the orb. Misara was about to jump in when a strong hand grasped her arm and pulled her back. She turned and saw Tamahome holding on to her.   
  
"I'm not letting you go." He said softly. Nakago, who was still standing behind him, smiled at her.   
  
"Don't you want to see your friend again?" Nakago asked her. Misara was taken aback. She had forgotten all about Taylor...was she even still in Kutou?   
  
Chichiri broke into her thoughts. "We have to go now! Misara! Chiriko can't hold on to us much longer!"  
  
Misara turned back to Chichiri. "Chiriko? But he's-"  
  
Interrupting her, Nakago smiled sardonically and waved. "She's staying. Bye now." The red orb shimmered and disappeared as Misara heard Miaka whisper, "Goodbye, Tamahome..."   
  
  
  
After her friends had disappeared, Misara stood very still, unsure of what had happened and what she should do next. Tamahome let go of her arm and Misara looked up at him. To her surprise, she saw tears running down his cheeks. I've never seen him cry before, she thought. She heard footsteps and saw Yui running toward them. She threw herself around Tamahome.  
  
"Tamahome, are you alright?" She asked frantically, then noticed his tears. Speechless, she could only stare at him. Nakago was glaring at Tamahome.   
  
"Where is Taylor?" Misara asked. None of them seemed to be paying any attention to her, and Misara grew angry. "Where is my friend?" She all but screamed.   
  
Yui jerked her head around. "What are YOU doing here?" She cried. "Go home!"  
  
"What???" Misara said, astonished. "What the hell do you mean by that?"   
  
Yui put her hands on her hips. "I mean, GO HOME!" She said, articulating the words. Misara's eyes narrowed. She was so infuriated that she almost couldn't speak. Almost.   
  
"I'd love to go home!" She exploded. "Just point out the exit and I'll gladly leave! I'm sick of this place, so if you can tell me how to get home, please do!" She turned to leave, then spun back around. "By the way, give me my friend before I go!"   
  
Nakago interrupted their squabble. "You want to see Taylor? Of course you do." He held out his hand. "This way." Misara ignored his out-stretched hand and waited until he had turned around and headed back into the palace. She followed him closely, not wanting to get lost. She took one last look at Yui and saw that she was watching Nakago very closely, her eyes full of suspicion.   
  
As Misara followed Nakago through the dark hallways, she wondered why he was being so civil to her. She was, after all, still an enemy of Seiryu because she still protected the warriors of Suzaku. Even now she couldn't comprehend what Nakago had done. Taitskun had told her that there could only be one Goddess of the Sky...which was why Nakago couldn't use Taylor. But she had also said something about how only one god could call the Goddess, and apparently Seiryu had called her too. Didn't Nakago say something about it being her decision? She shook her head, unable to remember exactly what had happened. When she focused again on the present, she was standing in front of a door and Nakago was standing next to it, watching her with a small smile on his face.   
  
"Go ahead. Your friend is inside." His smile grew bigger.   
  
Misara sneered at him, which only made him smile more. She rolled her eyes and pushed open the door. The room was pretty elaborate, for a literal dungeon, Misara thought sarcastically. In the corner of the room was a bed, and someone was sleeping in it. The lamp on the table was lit, and it cast an eerie glow around the room. How like Taylor, Misara thought. She could never sleep in absolute dark like Misara, who couldn't stand even a bit of light when she was trying to sleep.   
  
"Taylor-your best friend is here." Nakago's voice boomed out behind Misara, who whirled around in annoyance. I wish I had closed the door, she thought. The girl in the bed sat up quickly, the lamp turning her usual red hair into a burnished gold.   
  
"Misara?" She asked in disbelief, throwing back the covers and climbing hurriedly out of bed. She walked toward Misara, slowly at first, then when she realized that it really was Misara, she ran toward her and threw her arms around her best friend's neck.   
  
Misara happily returned the embrace. "I can't believe you're really here!" she cried.  
  
"You can't believe I'M here?" Taylor exclaimed. "I can't believe you're here! When you didn't come back from the bathroom, I went to find you and you weren't anywhere in the restaurant. I looked for an hour! I finally had to go home and I was so worried about you! The next morning you weren't in school an-" she stopped and looked over Misara's shoulder. "Oh, it's you..." She said flatly to Nakago, who returned her greeting with an emotionless stare.   
  
"Can't I talk to my friend alone?" Misara asked angrily. To her complete surprise, Nakago bowed and left the room without another word. After his footsteps had echoed off into the distance, Misara turned back to Taylor, who was staring at the floor. "What's wrong?" Misara asked, confused.   
  
Taylor sighed. "Nakago is...rather...intimidating, I guess. Even though he's good-looking, he still kind of freaks me out."   
  
Misara rolled her eyes. "He's incredibly arrogant. I don't think he knows what belongs to him and what doesn't."   
  
"He told me you were...what was it?" Taylor's forehead wrinkled in thought.   
  
"The Goddess of the Sky." Misara said softly.   
  
"Yeah, that's it!" Taylor's face lit up. "Why am I not surprised? It's sounds just like you. I always knew your talents were unrealized back home."   
  
Misara forced a laugh. "It's not all it's cracked up to be, you know. I have real work to do in Konan." She smiled, but it was a real one this time. "Good thing they didn't pick you for the job, because then they'd be in trouble."  
  
Taylor rolled her eyes and pointed to a chair, sitting down in another across the table. Misara sat down tiredly.   
  
"So what's Konan like? Is it like Kutou? Are the people nice? And, most importantly, did you meet any cute guys?" Taylor asked excitedly.   
  
Misara laughed. "Very nice, not really, yes and...YES."   
  
"Oh, do tell." Taylor said, smiling.   
  
"Well," Misara started. "first of all, there's the emperor, Hotohori. He's beautiful beyond belief, but unfortunately, he's a narcissist."   
  
Taylor groaned. "Figures."  
  
"Anyway," Misara continued. "Then there's all the warriors of Suzaku that I have to protect. Tamahome's alright, but he's in love with Miaka. Nuriko dresses like a woman, but lets not go there. Chichiri is really nice, but he wears this mask over his face. I don't know why...he feels sad all the time, too."   
  
"What do you mean, 'feels sad'?" Taylor asked, confused.   
  
Misara looked lost for words. "Well...never mind about that. Anyway, then there's Tasuki." Misara stopped again.   
  
"What? What?" Taylor asked impatiently. "Oh...I get it..." She started to laugh.   
  
Misara's eyes got wide. "No way! It's not what you're thinking!" Taylor kept on laughing. "Knock it off Taylor!" Misara cried.   
  
"Okay, okay...I'm sorry. Although I don't believe you, keep going." Taylor said, still snickering.   
  
Misara rolled her eyes. "Well, Mitsukake is nice, but he doesn't talk much and kind of keeps to himself. Then there's Chiriko." She stopped once again, thinking about what had happened before she left Konan.   
  
"Chiriko...?" Taylor said. "Is he cute?"   
  
"No." Misara answered too quickly.   
  
"Uh-huh..." Taylor said, raising her eyebrows again.   
  
"Don't even think about it, Taylor." Misara said tiredly.   
  
"Oh alright." Taylor sighed. "Anyway, your friends all sound kinda nice. I wish-" She stopped.   
  
"What's wrong? What's it like here?" Misara asked worriedly.   
  
"Oh, it's alright. I'm not really allowed to go anywhere, and Nakago can get really annoying after a while." Taylor shrugged.   
  
"What about Yui?" Misara asked.   
  
"Oh, she's pretty nice sometimes, unless Nakago is around, and then she gets all weird."   
  
"She didn't seem that nice to me." Misara said bitterly. "In fact, she told me to go away."   
  
Taylor looked surprised. "That doesn't sound like Yui. Maybe she was...I don't know." She shrugged again. "Maybe it's because you look too much like Miaka."   
  
"Why would that matter?" Misara asked, confused.   
  
"Yui hates Miaka...a lot. It's kind of scary. Apparently they used to be best friends, just like us, but Miaka did something to Yui and now Yui hates her."   
  
Misara was still confused. "Miaka doesn't hate Yui though...but she doesn't really talk about her that much."   
  
Taylor shook her head. "I don't know what's going on between those two. I think Nakago did something to Yui's mind, to tell you the truth. I don't understand how she could hate Miaka after being friends for so long."   
  
"Well, I wouldn't put it past Nakago...he seems like the kind of guy that would do that." Misara said angrily. "Anyway, this doesn't sound like such a great place. Let's get out of here."  
  
"How would we do that?" Taylor asked anxiously. "Nakago won't let me leave, and I don't think he'll let you either."   
  
"Why not? I don't belong to him!" Misara said.   
  
"Every time someone mentions you, he gets all weird. I don't know why, but it's kind of scary, the way he goes off in his own little world."   
  
"That's crazy. Let's get out of here, now." Misara said determinedly.   
  
"Again, I say how?" Taylor asked.   
  
Misara winked at her. "Don't be scared, but hold on tight." She took Taylor's hand and closed her eyes.   
  
"What are you doing now?" Taylor asked, laughing.   
  
"Shh!" Misara whispered, concentrating. A red light surrounded them, and Taylor squeaked in dismay.   
  
I want to go back...back to Konan! Misara screamed to herself. Suzaku help me get back home, to Konan, with Taylor!  



	15. Back in Konan...but where's Taylor?

Back In Konan again...but without Taylor?  
  
When Misara opened her eyes again, she found herself back in Konan. Strangely enough, she was in her bed and the sun was shining through her window.   
  
Wasn't it dark when I left? It hasn't been that long, she thought.  
  
She moved to sit up, but groaned and quickly lay back down. She felt so sick, a feeling she felt more and more frequently, although she wasn't sure why.   
  
"Not feeling well?" A voice echoed through the room. Misara jumped in surprise. Sitting next to her bed was Nuriko, and Misara wondered how she didn't see him when she first woke up.   
  
"How long have you been here?" She asked, ignoring his question.   
  
"Since you got here, about nine hours ago."   
  
"What?!?" She cried. "Why did you let me sleep so long?"  
  
"You were exhausted-we had to let you rest after the night you had."  
  
Suddenly, Misara was wide awake. "Where's Taylor?" She asked frantically.   
  
Nuriko looked confused. "Who?"  
  
"My friend! The one I brought back with me from Kutou!"  
  
Nuriko shook her head slowly. "There was only you, Misara. We saw a red light coming from the shrine of Suzaku, and we found you inside, unconscious. There wasn't anyone else there with you."   
  
Misara looked bewildered. "But-" She stopped for a second and thought. "Nakago..." She muttered under her breath.   
  
"Well anyway, you should get some more sleep." Nuriko said cheerfully. He stood up and headed for the door. "I'll let the others know how you're doing and I'll come check on you after a while." As he reached for the door handle, it moved on its own and the door swung open to reveal Chichiri standing outside. He rushed inside the room and over to Misara's bed. Nuriko gave him a funny look, but left the two alone. As the door closed behind him, Chichiri sat down on the bed.   
  
"What's the matter, Chichiri?" Misara asked worriedly. She had never seen him so nervous, and even with his smiling mask on, it was obvious that something was wrong. In his hands was the scroll Taitsukun had given Misara.   
  
He motioned to the scroll. "I was reading this a while ago, and now that you're awake, I want to talk to you about something." He opened it up and pointed to some writing that obviously hadn't been there before. "When were you going to tell us about this?" He asked, his voiced laced with anger.   
  
Misara grew uneasy. "What do you mean?" She asked carefully.  
  
"This!" He cried, pointing at the writing. "It says here you have to burn yourself alive in order for us to summon Suzaku! Why didn't you tell us?"   
  
Misara had never seen him so upset, but she was getting upset herself. "I can't read that writing!" she cried. "How was I supposed to tell you something I couldn't read myself?"   
  
"You must have known about it." Chichiri said angrily.   
  
"How do you know that?" Misara shot back.  
  
"It says so in the scroll, no da. Misara, if you can't read this, then how did you know about it?"   
  
Misara looked at her hands and hesitated for a moment before answering, "I had a dream about it. I knew in my dream that it was what I had to do, but I was hoping that's just what it was...a dream. Now that it's in that scroll, I guess it's true." She looked out the window. "I don't want to do it, Chichiri." She said finally.  
  
Chichiri sighed. "I don't blame you, Misara. But I don't think there's anything we can do about it, no da."   
  
"Do I HAVE to do it?" Misara asked loudly. "Does it say in that stupid scroll that I absolutely have to do it in order for you to summon Suzaku?"  
  
Chichiri looked at her for a moment. "Yes." He said finally.  
  
Misara didn't say anything, but looked down at her hands.   
  
Chichiri sighed. "I'm sorry to upset you like this, Misara. I just came in to ask you about it, not make you feel worse. But I do have something else to tell you. Since you can't read this scroll, I suppose you don't know about this either. Do you know why you have to burn yourself?"   
  
Misara turned to face him. "Of course I do! Suzaku is a phoenix, and phoenixes-" She stopped when he gave her a look. "Yeah, I know."   
  
"Well, a phoenix is a bird that can reincarnate itself. It grows older and weaker, weaker being the point, until it is too weak and must die. It then burns itself and is born again, stronger than before."  
  
"What do you mean, 'weaker being the point'?" Misara asked, confused.   
  
"Have you noticed yourself feeling sicker lately?"   
  
Misara shrugged. "I haven't really thought about it, but yeah, I guess."  
  
Chichiri slumped his shoulders. "Apparently, that's one of the signs, no da. The scroll said that the Goddess of the Sky would grow sicker and her powers grow weaker as the Seven Celestial Warriors she had to protect gathered. Once they were all assembled, she would burn herself, like a phoenix, to regain her strength and energy."  
  
Misara gasped. "So that's why I can't teleport so fast like you can! When I tried to teleport to Kutou, I got sidetracked and ended up in a dozen other places. I thought it was because I wasn't concentrating...Is that why I couldn't bring Taylor back with me?"   
  
Chichiri looked astounded. "You tried to bring someone to Konan with you in your condition?"  
  
Misara looked at him curiously. "Well, yeah...why?"  
  
"You could have killed yourself! If you use your powers too much, especially now that they're getting weaker, it'll cause you to get much worse faster than you're supposed to. Trying to teleport someone along with yourself-especially when you couldn't even teleport yourself to the right place the first time...it's a wonder you're still alive! If you had kept on using your powers, you probably would have had to burn yourself alive before we had collected all the warriors." Chichiri cried.  
  
She stopped and looked up at him fearfully. "Does that mean that...now that all the warriors are here...that I have to, you know, soon?"   
  
"The sooner the better, I'm afraid." Chichiri sighed again. "If you don't do it before you get too sick, you'll die and we can't revive you no da."   
  
"Can't Mitsukake heal me so I don't have to do it?" Misara asked frantically.   
  
"I'm sorry Misara." Chichiri stood. "You must complete your task as the Goddess of the Sky. But you do have some time. Since Tamahome is-" He stopped and looked at her as sadness took over her face. "I suppose you know about that." He headed for the door, and as he was leaving, he stopped once more and turned around. "By the way," he said, "Tasuki's feeling better. He wanted to see you as soon as you woke up. I'm afraid you'll have to go to him, no da. He's still pretty injured and Mitsukake won't let him leave his bed." Chichiri closed the door behind him.   
  
  
A few minutes later, Misara stood outside her door, dressed and hungry. She caught Nuriko coming back to see her, and Nuriko promised to bring her a snack while she was visiting Tasuki. When she opened the door to Tasuki's room, she met Mitsukake, who was coming out.   
  
"Don't say anything that might upset him." Mitsukake reminded her.   
  
She nodded, smiling, and he smiled one of his rare smiles back at her, then held the door open and closed it behind her.  
  
"I'm telling ya, Mitsukake, you're making me sick with all this medicine-" Tasuki stopped his whining when he saw Misara instead of the healer. "Misara!" Tasuki made a move to jump out of bed, groaned really loudly and fell back onto his pillow, his eyes shut tight in pain.   
  
Misara ran over to his bedside. "Are you alright?" She asked frantically.   
  
"What, this?" He said, looking up at her. "I've been hurt worse than this. This is nothing!" He grimaced again.  
  
"Right." Misara said sarcastically. "You know, you need to be a little more careful. What would Mitsukake do when he came back and saw that you had 5 more broken bones than when he left?"   
  
"Hey, I can take care of myself, thank you very much." Tasuki said.  
  
Misara shook her head. "I'm not going to protect you if you keep on being so stupid! And you're supposed to be my friend!"   
  
"I am your friend!" Tasuki said, laughing. "But are you mine?" He asked, half-seriously.  
  
"That depends..." Misara said coyly. "I'll have to think about that one."  
  
Tasuki rolled his eyes at her. "Pull up a chair and stay a while, will ya?"  
  
Misara grabbed the nearest chair and pulled it over to his bed. "Chichiri said you wanted to see me as soon as I woke up. Well, I'm here. What do you need?"   
  
Tasuki shrugged. "I just wanted to see if you were okay, that's all. You didn't come back with us last night, and then I heard that the others found you in the temple of Suzaku. What exactly happened over there?"  
  
Misara looked at the floor. "Well, it's kind of a long story."  
  
Tasuki looked at his wounds. "I got time."   
  
  
  
Hey, I couldn't think of any other way to end that chapter, otherwise it would have gone on for a long time. Ah, poor Tasuki. Although Misara has it worse, I'm afraid. Thanks for reading this far-I'll work on the next chapter as soon as I can. Unless, of course, you hate this story and tell me not to continue.   



	16. The time has come...but is Misara ready?

  
  
Misara had finished eating dinner when the rain finally stopped. The last few hours had gone by fast, and Tasuki had dozed on and off while she was talking to him. It was kind of annoying, but she decided that he needed his sleep and that she was just as tired. During one of his naps, she had left the room to find Miaka, who was sleeping in her room with Hotohori by her side, holding her hand while she slept. Misara apologized for waking him up and quickly left, making faces at him when the door was closed. After talking to Nuriko, she learned that Miaka had wandered away and almost drowned in the palace lake, saved in the nick of time by Hotohori.   
  
Convenient for him, she thought meanly, then reprimanded herself. There's no reason for me to be jealous. I've got more important things to worry about than my crush on Hotohori.   
  
  
Misara headed out to the garden, missing her flowers. Everything was still wet, and the sky was still cloudy and gray. It looked like it would rain again soon. She found some new flowers that she had never noticed before. The petals were the color of fire, starting with yellow on the inside and ending up blood red at the tips. She leaned over to smell them, but they didn't have a scent. Still, they were pretty, and she picked one. She wandered around the garden for a few minutes, then headed back inside. Walking past Tasuki's room, she peered through the door. Tasuki was still asleep, and Mitsukake was nowhere to be seen. Tasuki was snoring loudly, and Misara couldn't help but snicker. She leaned over and kissed the top of his head.   
  
"I'm sorry I couldn't protect you..." She whispered. She put the flower on the pillow beside him and tiptoed out of the room.   
  
  
She headed back toward her quarters, listless and bored. There was nothing to do. She didn't even feel like playing her violin. Chichiri had forbidden her from teleporting to Kotou to find Taylor, and she wasn't too happy with him. All of a sudden, she heard someone running in the hallway outside her room. She faintly heard a guard telling Hotohori that Tamahome had broken into the palace. She opened her door and saw Hotohori running past. She stood in the hallway, a little bewildered, and heard Miaka screaming.   
  
"Let me out! Hotohori, please!" Miaka's shrill voice echoed through the hall. Misara ran over to Miaka's room, where she had been locking inside by Hotohori. Misara pulled on the door.   
  
"Stop yelling Miaka!" She said loudly over her friend's cries. "I'm working on it!"  
  
"Misara! Tamahome came back to kill me!" Miaka whimpered.   
  
"I know, and I won't let him. Let's get you out of here." Misara said determinedly, closing her eyes and concentrating. After a short inner struggle, Nuriko's symbol appeared on her chest and she pulled the door open with a violent tug, breaking the lock and almost the entire door. Miaka, who had been leaning on the door, fell forward and knocked Misara over.   
  
"Are you alright?" Miaka said quickly, jumping up and trying to pull Misara to her feet. Misara pushed her away weakly and stood up, wobbling a little. Miaka gave her a funny look.  
  
"I'm alright, really." Misara said unconvincingly. "I just used a little too much power, that's all. Come on, let's hurry!"   
  
Miaka nodded and the two rushed off to find Tamahome as the rain started once more.   
  
  
  
For all her pain, Misara ran fast. She and Miaka decided to split up to find their friends faster, and Misara set off toward the shrine of Suzaku. Her inner feelings told her that Hotohori was this way, but she wasn't going to tell Miaka that. She didn't want Miaka to get hurt, she realized, for all her jealousness of her. Dummy, she thought. You shouldn't have let her out of her room. She hoped it would be all over before Miaka found them and ran even faster.   
  
She burst into the square in front of the shrine and stopped in her tracks. Hotohori was attacking Tamahome with his sword while the rest of the Suzaku Seven stood by and watched, horrified.   
  
"Stop! Hotohori, don't!" She cried out before she could stop herself, and Hotohori turned at the sound of her voice.  
  
Miaka? He thought, squinting through the rain at the small figure. He spent too much time trying to see her that he almost didn't block Tamahome's sudden attack.   
  
Misara's hands flew to her mouth. Why didn't I feel that Hotohori was in trouble? She thought desperately. Before she could think anymore, they had stopped fighting. Tamahome was looking at her evilly, and opened his mouth to speak.  
  
"Priestess of Suzaku!" he called to her. "I've come to kill you!"   
  
This time, her anger took over at his mistake. "Then come over here and kill me, you coward!" She shouted through the thunder. "Come over here and try to kill me! Come closer and see the mistake you made before I rip you to pieces!"   
  
He smirked and walked closer, but she didn't wait for him to get to her. She rushed at him, weaponless and weak. He raised his sword to hit her, but she vanished in front of his eyes and appeared seconds later behind him, her bow in hand and her arrows on her back. She strung an arrow and lifted her bow, and aimed for his heart. He was still looking bewildered at her sudden disappearance, and she had a perfect shot. She pulled back.  
  
"Tamahome!" The piercing, shrill scream echoed through the square. Startled, Misara let go of the string, and the arrow shot toward Tamahome, who had turned to find the source of the noise. The arrow hit him in the shoulder, close to his heart, and it was enough to send him crashing to the ground.   
  
"Tamahome!" Miaka's voice cried again, louder this time as Misara saw her running toward him, her face full of fear.   
  
  
  
Misara was shocked at what she had done. Although she had taken aim, she didn't believe that she ever could have hit him. And one of her warriors...she had harmed one that she was sworn to protect. She knew that although he wasn't really Tamahome anymore she could attack him, but just the thought of hurting one of her dearest friends was enough to send her into shock. She turned, bow still in hand, and bolted up the steps to the shrine, running inside and slamming the door behind her. After she had latched the door, she leaned up against it, breathing heavily, her eyes wide. Suddenly, her knees buckled and she collapsed against the door. She lay there for a few minutes, listen to the rain on the roof above.   
  
She had used too much of her power, she knew that too well. The running up the steps to the shrine hadn't helped her either, and she knew it was almost over. What was it that Chichiri said? She closed her eyes tightly, trying to remember, but it was no use. She stumbled toward the statue and noticed for the first time, a ring of fire behind it. It was enclosed inside a perfect circle, not moving anywhere but blazing brightly in place. Had that been there before? She asked herself, not remembering that either. She reached out toward the flames. They didn't even warm her hands, and she leaned closer. Reaching out again, this time she stuck her hand into the fire fully. It wasn't even hot! She pulled back in surprise at how cold the flames felt.   
  
Was it time? She asked herself. Now?  
  
A voice inside whispered, "Yes..." and she knew it wasn't her own. She turned and looked back at the statue of Suzaku, and nodded.   
  
Someone was banging on the door of the shrine. A voice was calling her, but she wasn't strong enough to hear it clearly. It sounded like Chichiri, but she wasn't sure and she didn't care. She set her bow and arrows in front of the statue and was about to go back to the cold fire when she noticed her ring. Instead of being tightly held in Suzaku's talon like usual, the statue had moved again. This time, the talons were facing upward, like an open palm, and the ring was resting on top, free for her to take. She turned away.   
  
The voice outside the door turned to many, all crying at her. She put her hands over her ears and hurried toward the fire.   
  
They can't stop me! Her mind screamed. They can't! I have to do this...I have to do this now or I'll die! Don't you understand?  
  
"Don't you understand?" She screamed out loud. "Leave me alone!" She had reached the edge of the pit. Standing next to it, she suddenly felt lighter.   
  
I am sick, so sick. Now I can feel better.   
  
The door smashed to pieces and eight figures stood in the rain outside.  
  
This is my duty...  
  
"Misara!"  
  
This is my destiny...  
  
Footsteps running toward her, sounding impossibly loud in her ears.  
  
No...  
  
"Misara, stop!"  
  
NO...  
  
"Don't do this, Misara!"  
  
Leave me alone...  
  
"Oh please Misara! Stop!"  
  
And be in pain for eternity?   
  
"Please Misara! Get away from that fire!"  
  
Don't try to stop me, guys...I won't let you!  
  
"Misara, don't do this!"  
  
You understand, don't you Tasuki? Why are you crying?  
  
"Misara!!!"  
  
We ARE friends…right?  
  
"Misara!!!!!!!!"  
  
Promise?  
  
"MISARA!!!!"  
  
  
Promise?  
  
"MISARA!!!!"  



	17. Misara is such a troublemaker...can Tasu...

  
The Suzaku Seven sat silently at the table in Hotohori's room, with the exception of Tasuki, who was put back in bed by Mitsukake. Sleeping next to Tasuki was a tiny baby, Misara. After the fire had died, they had dug her out of the ashes, a little sleeping baby. She had only woken once because she was hungry, and she had been quickly handed to a servant to be fed, since none of them knew what babies ate. Tasuki took her when she was brought back, and wouldn't let anyone else hold her. While the two were sleeping, the remainder of the Suzaku Seven and Miaka discussed their next plan of action.   
  
Since Nakago was still in possession of the Miaka's scroll, they had to get it back. It was the scroll that they needed to summon Suzaku; the one Hotohori had given Miaka when she became priestess.   
  
After Misara had shot Tamahome with one of her arrows, it was discovered that Tamahome was under the influence of Kudoku, a powerful drug that had no cure. It would alter the personality of whoever took it, which explained Tamahome's actions. Apparently Tamahome conquered the drug and was all right, except for the wound in his shoulder, which Mitsukake quickly healed. Tamahome assumed that Nakago still believed he was under the Kodoku spell, and so he volunteered to retrieve the scroll from Nakago.   
  
After that was taken care of, they turned to Chichiri to explain what had happened with Misara. A long explanation followed, which resulted in Miaka becoming very angry.   
  
"I can't believe none of you would tell me about this!" She exclaimed angrily. "To think that you would keep something like that from me!"  
  
"Hold on a second Miaka-I didn't know about it either!" Nuriko said.  
  
"Neither did I." Chiriko spoke up.   
  
"Then who did?" Miaka said, exasperated.  
  
"I was the only one, besides Misara, that knew. She only knew because of a dream she had. She couldn't even read this scroll, no da." Chichiri said quietly.   
  
"Why wouldn't you tell us that she had to do something horrible like that?"  
  
"Don't get mad at Chichiri, Miaka." Tamahome said, putting his hand on her shoulder. "I'm sure he has his reasons."  
  
"I only found out about it earlier today. Misara knew a lot longer, but why she didn't say anything I don't know." Chichiri sighed. "Apparently there are many things we do not understand about the Goddess of the Sky yet."   
  
"Why wouldn't she tell us something like that? Does she trust us?" Miaka yelled.  
  
Chichiri shrugged. "I'm not the one to ask, Miaka."   
  
"What else do you know?" Miaka said loudly. "Or are you going to keep everything else a secret too?"  
  
"Miaka!" Nuriko said in surprise. "Don't take it out on Chichiri!"  
  
Miaka slouched back in her seat, a scowl on her face. Then she sighed, and straightened up. "I'm sorry, Chichiri. I know it's not your fault, but I'm angry just the same. Why would she have to do something horrible like that just so we could summon Suzaku?"   
  
"I know...it's not fair." Hotohori spoke up. He had not said a word since the incident, and it looked sometimes as though he were not paying attention. He kept looking at the floor, his eyes sad. "I just wish..." he continued. "there was something I...we...could have done to prevent it."   
  
Chichiri nodded in agreement. Before he could speak, Miaka cut in again.  
  
"What does the scroll say now, Chichiri?"  
  
Chichiri looked surprised. "Oh...I don't know. I haven't really looked at it." He opened it up and saw that there was new writing in it.   
  
"Great." Tamahome muttered.   
  
Chichiri looked sideways at him before reading it. "It says that we have to wait for the Goddess to reach her regular age before we can summon Suzaku."  
  
"What??" Nuriko screeched. "We have to wait that long?"  
  
"How old was she, anyway?" Miaka asked. "I never thought to ask her that."   
  
Nuriko shrugged. "I think she was about 15 or so...I didn't ask either. Chichiri?."  
  
The monk shrugged too. "I didn't think to ask, and she didn't say anything. Regardless, it's a long time to wait, no matter how old she was. I just wish we knew."  
  
"16." Hotohori spoke up once more. "She was 16 years old."  
  
"How do you know?" Miaka asked.  
  
Hotohori shrugged and turned away. Miaka looked at him for a moment before speaking again.   
  
"So we have to wait 16 years to summon Suzaku?"   
  
Chichiri sighed. "I suppose, although it doesn't make any sense."   
  
Nuriko stood. "This DOESN'T make any sense, and it's not going to make anymore tonight. Let's go get some sleep and think about it more in the morning."  
  
  
  
The next morning, everyone in the palace was awakened by a loud girly-sounding scream. Everyone raced to Miaka's room, wondering what had happened. Contrary to their beliefs, it was not Miaka.   
  
"Hey, where's Tasuki?" Tamahome asked. Everyone suddenly bolted out the door and into Tasuki's room, where they found him standing in the corner, waving a pillow around and pointing at the bed. Nuriko ran over to his bed.  
  
"Awwww!" He exclaimed happily. "How adorable!" The rest of the group inched over cautiously to the bed, where they found Misara still sleeping. Although she had been a baby the night before, she looked about three years old this morning. Nuriko grinned at Chichiri. "I guess we don't have to wait 16 years, right?"   
  
Chichiri shrugged in confusion. "I guess...not. If this keeps up."  
  
"What's going on??" Tasuki whined from the corner where he still cowered.   
  
Nuriko rolled his eyes, then leaned over and picked Misara up. Immediately, Tasuki came over and took her out of Nuriko's arms, causing Nuriko to whine.   
  
"I thought you were scared of her, Tasuki." Nuriko exclaimed.  
  
"I was not scared of her! I was just...surprised, that's all." He muttered.   
  
"And why do you always get to hold her? What do you know about kids anyway?" Miaka asked.   
  
Tasuki's sarcastic reply was interrupted by Misara, who had woken up. She looked around at everyone curiously, her enormous blue eyes taking in everything.   
  
Nuriko was overjoyed. "Oh, let me hold her! She's so cute!" He reached out to take her from Tasuki. Misara saw his outstretched hands and pulled away, clinging to Tasuki fiercely.   
  
"No!" She said. "I want Taki!"   
  
Nuriko frowned. "Don't you want to see your uncle Nuriko?" He held out his arms once more and smiled.   
  
Misara considered for a moment, then said simply. "No want Iko. I want Taki."  
  
Nuriko groaned. "What have you done to this kid, Tasuki?"  
  
  
  
Tasuki pretty much monopolized Misara the entire morning, even eating lunch with her on his lap, much to Nuriko's chagrin. He managed to steal her away while Tasuki wasn't looking, which resulted in an argument between the two.   
  
That afternoon, Misara wandered off while Tasuki was busy with something. First she wandered into the rooms where Hotohori conducted imperial business, and proceeded to move all the papers on his desk to the floor. Unsure of what to do, Hotohori sat and watched, flustered. When she was done, she toddled over to him and sat on his lap. After pulling on his hair for a few minutes and examining the buttons on his clothes, she promptly fell asleep in his lap, and stayed there until Tasuki ran in frantically. She woke up just as Tasuki carried her out of the room, and insisted that he put her down.   
  
When she ran away again, Tasuki found her with Tamahome. It appeared that Tamahome was very good with kids, and Misara was having tons of fun playing hide-and-seek with him. But was obvious who her favorite was when Tasuki showed up and she left with him without a fight.   
  
She got away from him again an hour later, finding Chichiri and Nuriko this time. Nuriko played with her until Tasuki came, looking more hysterical than before. Another fight ensued, during which Chichiri picked Misara up and carried her off while the other two were fighting. Taking her to the pond in the palace, he let her fish for a while, but she had more fun wading in the water than catching fish. She escaped from him and was found sometime later, sitting with Chiriko and playing his flute. This time, Tasuki was determined to keep an eye on her. When they had dinner in the garden, he tied a string to his wrist and the other end to hers. While Nuriko kept Tasuki distracted, Miaka cut the string, and Misara wandered away.   
  
Tasuki was so incredibly tired from chasing Misara all over that he went to bed early, taking Misara with him. While they were sleeping, Tamahome went back to Kutou and successfully retrieved the scroll. They were all ready to summon Suzaku. They just had to wait for Misara to grow up again.   
  
During the night, Misara woke up. She had had a nightmare, and the tall blond man in it scared her. She didn't cry, however, and quietly slipped out of bed. Stepping outside, the three-year old wandered around the palace until she found Hotohori's bedroom. After several attempts to open the door, she finally got inside. Climbing into bed with Hotohori, she fell asleep again on his chest. Sometime later, Hotohori woke up and found her there. He decided not to take her back to Tasuki's room, and instead smiled and fell back asleep, his arms around the sleeping child.   
  
  
  
The next morning, they awoke once more to a scream. They ran to Tasuki's room, where he was digging under the covers and looking under the table.   
  
"What are you doing, Tasuki?" Nuriko said groggily.   
  
"I can't find Misara!" He cried.   
  
"Hey, where's Hotohori?" Tamahome asked. Everyone groaned and ran to Hotohori's room. Opening the door, they found Misara in Hotohori's bed, asleep with the Emperor. Unfortunately, it seemed that Misara had grown up overnight, and everyone stared dumbfounded at the sight of the 16-year old sleeping with Hotohori.   
  
"That doesn't look very good, no da." Chichiri said quietly.   
  
"Maybe we should wake them up." Chiriko offered.   
  
Tamahome stifled a laugh. "Let's just let them wake up by themselves."   
  
Everyone smiled suddenly, and closed the door quietly on their way out.   



	18. Revealed love, mistaken identities...and...

  
The planning was over and servants were running around frantically with last-minute preparations for the summoning ceremony. While Miaka was getting dressed, a scream echoed through the halls, only to be cut off abruptly. Nuriko winked at the rest of the Suzaku Seven, who smiled back at him. All except Tasuki, who hadn't smiled since they left Misara in Hotohori's room.   
  
In Hotohori's room, Misara was dumbfounded and speechless, apart from the scream. When she had first opened her eyes, she found herself looking up at Hotohori. Not only was he in her room, but he was in her bed as well. He was awake as well, and looking at her in surprise, as if he didn't remember that she was there. That's when she screamed, but before she was really into it, he put his hand over her mouth and silenced her.   
  
She pushed his hand away. "What are you doing in my room?" She hissed.  
  
His eyes widened. "This isn't your room...it's mine."   
  
She sat up and looked around. Indeed it was, but she was still confused. "Why am I in your room?" She asked, a little less angry.  
  
"Actually, you came in here in the middle of the night." Hotohori said softly, and when Misara looked at him again, she saw that he was blushing.   
  
"I don't remember that!" She said, more confused than ever.   
  
"I'm not surprised..." he said slowly. "You were only a little child."   
  
Misara stared at him. "I was WHAT?" She asked loudly.   
  
He flinched and replied. "You were only about three years old."   
  
Misara crossed her arms. "Explain."  
  
Hotohori sighed. Opening his mouth, he was about to speak when Misara gasped. She had suddenly remembered everything that had happened the night that Tamahome came back.   
  
"I remember!" She cried. "Tamahome was...and I went to the shrine and-" She stopped when she saw Hotohori's eyes suddenly become very sad.   
  
"Yes." He said bitterly. "You went to the shrine and burned yourself alive before we could stop you. You didn't even tell us that you had to do it, Misara!" He finished angrily. "Why didn't you tell me?"  
  
"Why didn't I tell YOU?" She sputtered. "You were too busy with Miaka to pay any attention to me that night...or ever!" She added. "Besides, I knew that if I told any of you, you'd just stop me from doing it."  
  
"Of course I'd have stopped you!" Hotohori cried, looking very upset for usually calm man. "I care about you too much to let you do something as foolish as that!"  
  
"Care about me? You don't care about anyone but Miaka!" Misara spit out. As soon as she said it, she knew it was a mistake. "I'm sorry Hotohori...that wasn't very fair of me." She said softly.  
  
"You're right..." Hotohori said, looking at the floor. "I DIDN'T care about anyone but Miaka. But she loves Tamahome, and I have to accept that now, I guess."  
  
"Look, Hotohori...there's something I wanted to tell you." Misara started hesitantly. "Maybe this isn't the right time, but if I don't say it now..." She looked out the window. "I won't be able to ever say it." She sighed. "For a while now...I've...I mean..." Frustrated, she spit it out almost angrily. "I think I've fallen in love with you!"  
  
Misara peeked at him, but he wouldn't raise his head. She bit her lip, regretting ever saying it, climbed out of his bed and walked over to the door. When he still didn't speak, she silently opened the door and left without a backward glance.   
  
  
  
  
It was finally time to summon Suzaku. The seven warriors gathered in the shrine with Misara while they waited for Miaka. Entering the shrine, Miaka carried with her the scroll that contained the words to summon the beast god. The Celestial Warriors gathered in a circle around the small pyre, while Miaka and Misara climbed the steps and stood across from each other. Misara looked around the circle at all the warriors, her eyes resting on Chiriko as she remembered suddenly.  
  
Oh...sugar. She thought. What am I going to do? He made me promise not to tell anyone!   
  
Chiriko looked up at her suddenly and their eyes met. Misara silently pleaded with her eyes, begging him to speak up, but he just turned away. Misara felt like crying.   
  
Then it's for nothing, her heart whispered, I did all that for nothing. Sacrificing myself...and we won't even summon Suzaku. A tear slid down her cheek before she could stop it.   
  
"Misara?" Miaka asked softly, looking at her curiously.  
  
"Oh...it's nothing." Misara said too quickly. "Let's get started."  
  
Miaka looked unconvinced. "Tell me what's wrong first."   
  
Misara shook her head. "There's nothing wrong."  
  
Miaka crossed her arms in front of her. "No, there's something wrong. I'm tired of you never telling us when you're upset. Tell me!"  
  
"What's the problem?" Nuriko asked from down below. The two girls had forgotten about the warriors being there. Miaka turned to Nuriko.  
  
"Misara won't tell me what's wrong with her." Then she turned back to her friend. "I'm not going to summon Suzaku until you tell me what's going on."   
  
Misara, realizing that they COULDN'T summon Suzaku even if she did tell, burst into unexpected tears. Miaka gasped.  
  
The warriors saw Misara crying, and Tasuki moved to run up the pyre steps. However, Hotohori beat him to it, dashing up the steps and putting his arms around Misara. Tasuki stood at the bottom, frowning.  
  
"Misara, why are you crying like this?" Hotohori asked her, wiping the tears off her face.   
  
She shook her head violently, trying to push him away, but he wouldn't let go of her.   
  
"I'm...not...crying!" She stammered. "I just...got...ashes in my eyes!" She tried to push him away again, and this time he let go reluctantly. She sniffled, wiped at her eyes, and forced a smile. "I think I'm all right now. Let's hurry, okay?"  
  
Hotohori sighed, nodded, and went back down the steps. When he reached the bottom, Tasuki stood in his way. He called up to Misara  
  
"Are you sure you're all right?" He asked worriedly.   
  
Misara looked down at her friend. "Of course!" She said, smiling a real smile this time. Hotohori turned to Tasuki, an emotion in his eyes that Tasuki couldn't read.   
  
Miaka stood next to Misara, hands on her hips, eying her friend with suspicion.   
  
Misara smiled at her. "I'm okay. Promise."  
  
Miaka threw her hands in the air. "Sure, sure." She said sarcastically. She moved back to her place on the other side of the pyre, opened the scroll and began to read.   
  
Misara looked over at Chiriko once more.   
  
Oh Chiriko...no, it's not Chiriko. It's Amiboshi...you know you don't want to do this! Why, why do you have to do what Nakago says?   
  
Chiriko, or rather, Amiboshi, refused to look up at her. Suddenly, Miaka finished her speech and threw the scroll into the fire.   
  
Misara couldn't take it any longer. "NO!" she screamed at the top of her lungs, trying to get the scroll out before it burned. Her head spun wildly as the sleeve of her dress caught on fire. She toppled over backward, falling off the pyre.  
  
Why can't I think straight? Her mind screamed as she fell through the air. Is this what happens when I disobey a celestial warrior?  
  
She was caught just before she hit the floor and the fire on her sleeve was put out quickly. Still disoriented, she didn't look to see who had caught her, and instead tried to stand and run back up the pyre steps. Strong hands caught her from behind and held her back, but barely.   
  
Miaka stood at the top of the pyre. "What's wrong with her?" She screamed. Suddenly, she turned back to the fire. Her breath caught in her throat. "Suzaku...why hasn't he come yet?"   
  
The warriors looked up in surprise. "What do you mean, why hasn't he come?" Nuriko shrieked. "You mean he's not here?"  
  
Hotohori, trying to hold Misara down, didn't take his eyes off her but yelled up to Miaka, "We did everything that the scroll said to do!"  
  
"No you didn't!" Misara screamed. "You didn't! You didn't!" She thrashed around on the floor, while Hotohori and Tasuki did everything they could to keep her down.   
  
"What do you mean, Misara?" Tamahome yelled, bending down next to her and helping the other two hold her down.   
  
Suddenly, Misara stopped moving and lay very still, Tamahome's symbol appearing on her forehead. It lingered for a few moments, then Hotohori's flashed, followed by Nuriko's, Chichiri's, Tasuki's and Mitsukake's. They flashed brightly for a few more seconds, then all died at once, and Misara closed her eyes in exhaustion.   
  
Tamahome looked up. "Where was Chiriko's-" he trailed off as they all stood, staring at Chiriko.   
  
The usually kind and quiet Chiriko narrowed his eyes and raised his flute to his lips. The sound that poured out was not pleasant like the things he usually played. In fact, it hurt to listen to. The warriors of Suzaku covered their ears but they could still hear it.   
  
Nuriko's head was swimming, but he managed to speak for a moment. "What are you doing, Chiriko?" He howled.   
  
Chiriko stopped playing long enough to answer. When he stopped, the Suzaku warriors collapsed in relief on the floor. "I am NOT Chiriko." He said angrily. "I am Amiboshi, of the Seiryu Seven, and I am here to kill you." He raised the flute again.  
  
"But you had a symbol!" Hotohori said frantically.   
  
"That was only a tattoo, so I could trick you into thinking I was one of you." He pulled back the collar of his shirt, revealing a blue symbol on his shoulder.   
  
"But...Misara..." Tamahome stammered. "She was supposed to-"   
  
Amiboshi cut him off. "I threatened to kill her if she told anyone, which is probably why she was crying earlier. Apparently, since she's the Goddess of the Sky, she has to obey the warriors she's supposed to protect."   
  
"But you're not a warrior of Suzaku!" Miaka cried. "She didn't have to listen to you! She's only supposed to protect the warriors of Suzaku!"   
  
Amiboshi smiled. "Not anymore." He raised the flute up again. "Goodbye." He started to play again, and the Suzaku warriors screamed in pain.   
  
Suddenly, another sound was heard faintly. Amiboshi stopped playing in surprise. Before he could react, Tamahome was up and running at him. Amiboshi jumped out of the way just in time and ran out the door, followed closely by Tamahome and Tasuki. Miaka ran down the pyre steps to Chichiri.   
  
"Follow them Chichiri!" She cried.  
  
The two of them disappeared, leaving Hotohori, Mitsukake and Nuriko behind with Misara. Suddenly, she opened her eyes and moved to sit up. Hotohori, still holding on to her, looked down in surprise, then helped her to her feet. Leaning on Hotohori, she began to cry.   
  
She was still crying a few minutes later when Miaka, Tamahome, Tasuki and Chichiri came back...without Amiboshi. Miaka held his flute in her hands.  
  
Misara looked at the flute, then lifted her head and looked at Miaka. Miaka shook her head sadly and Misara turned away and closed her eyes again.   
  
Suddenly the door to the shrine opened again and a small figure came in. In his hand was a leaf. He lifted it to his lips and out came the sound that had distracted Amiboshi.   
  
"Who are you?" Nuriko asked.  
  
The young boy lifted his foot and showed them the shining red symbol that flashed there. Everyone gasped, and Misara lifted her head from Hotohori's shoulder and looked at the boy.   
  
"Who are you?" Misara softly asked again, and this time he answered.   
  
"I am Chiriko, one of the Suzaku Seven."  
  
  
  
  
Well, that's finally over with. I feel kind of bad for "killing" Ami off like that, but like I said in the beginning...this follows the basic storyline of Fushigi Yuugi. Unfortunately. Since I've been doing that all along, I don't know what to do about Hotohori. The poor man. I haven't even started on the next chapter yet. Eeek! Apparently, I seem to leave you guys at cliffhangers and you probably don't appreciate that. This wasn't much of a cliffhanger, but if I keep this up, this story's going to go on for a loooooong time. At least until I finish the series, right? And I've already got ideas for doing the OVAs. (And the crowd says "End the stupid story already!") I think I shall never end this story, since this is how I spend my free time, writing and daydreaming about Misara's next adventure. And I don't have any really good ideas for another fanfic. But I'm working on it. BTW-I want to give a BIG THANK YOU for all those who actually kept reading this lame story. So...THANK YOU LOTS AND LOTS! You're all very good for my self-esteem, you know.   



	19. At least THATS done with...but the day i...

  
What a horrible day, Misara said to herself. She was sitting in the garden alone, right before the sun was about to set. First Hotohori and this morning, then the ceremony...and then afterwards...  
  
After the real Chiriko had showed up, Taitskun had appeared out of nowhere, as she was apt to do, and demanded to know what they where doing. She then proceeded to chew Miaka and the others out for being so stupid, but had also informed them of another way to summon Suzaku. First they had to go to Hokkan to retrieve a Shinzaho from Genbu, then they had to go to Ciro and get another from Byakko. Although she yelled at everyone else, she said nothing to Misara. She did, however, say something to the others about her, just as she was leaving. "Take her with you," She had said, pointing to Misara, "because you're really going to need her." She then disappeared.   
  
Yes, Misara agreed with herself, it had been an incredibly horrible day. I wonder what Taylor would...she stopped in midthought, then screamed. "What an atrocious friend I am!" She said out loud. "I forgot completely about Taylor in Kutou!" Suddenly, she had an idea, and ran off to find Chichiri.   
  
  
"Well, I don't know, Misara..." Chichiri said reluctantly, scratching his head. "That's a pretty dangerous thing to do..."   
  
Misara rolled her eyes at him. "Come on Chichiri! What good are my powers if you won't let me use them?"   
  
Chichiri thought for a moment, then sighed heavily. "I suppose you can go...on one condition." He added. "You have to take someone with you."   
  
Misara threw her hands up. "Fine...I'll take one of you with me." Secretly though, she was thankful for his protectiveness.   
  
Now, who should I take? She thought for a moment, then decided the best choice would be Tasuki. Besides, she hadn't really seen him today. She told Chichiri that she would be right back, then ran to find her red-headed friend.   
  
He wasn't in his room, and no one had seen him since the ceremony. Frustrated, Misara wandered around the palace. She finally found him sitting in a gazebo by the palace lake. Sneaking up on him, she threw her hands around his eyes and said, "Guess who?"   
  
He shrugged glumly, and she pulled her hands back. "What's wrong?" She asked worriedly. "You're not getting sick or something, are you?"   
  
He shook his head. "No, I'm not."   
  
"Well, something must be wrong." She said. "You're usually not this depressed. Tell me what's wrong."  
  
He shook his head again. "Nothing's wrong with me."   
  
Misara sighed. "Well, if you say so..."   
  
Silence took over for a moment, then Misara remembered why she was looking for Tasuki in the first place.   
  
"Hey, Tasuki..." She started, taking his arm. "You wanna do me a favor?"  
  
"What kind of favor?" He asked suspiciously, looking at her for the first time.   
  
"Well..."  
  
  
  
A few minutes later, the two were back in Chichiri's room, where he had been waiting impatiently.   
  
"I'm sorry I have to drag you along Tasuki." Misara said, glaring at Chichiri.   
  
"Sorry doll, I'm with Chichiri on this one." Tasuki said. "There's no way you should go by yourself."   
  
Misara rolled her eyes. "Shall we, boys?"  
  
  
  
It was raining in Kutou when Misara and Tasuki appeared in the palace gardens. After making sure no one was around, they ran inside, but they were still soaked by the time they found a safe place to hide. Misara leaned against the wall, out of breath, while Tasuki sat next to the door, listening for people outside.   
  
"Damn...I hate water..." Tasuki grumbled. Misara looked at him and laughed.   
  
"You look so funny when you're wet!" She cried happily. His hair was plastered to his forehead and dripping in his eyes so he had to keep wiping at them.   
  
"Well, you're not much better!" He retorted. Indeed, she wasn't, she actually looked worse than he did. She shrugged and laughed again.   
  
After a few minutes when they had dried off a little, Tasuki leaned against the door once more and said, "I think the coast is clear. Let's go."   
  
They headed out, sneaking along the corridors and dodging the guards that marched about. Finally, they were there. Misara stood in front of the door to Taylor's room, unsure about going inside.   
  
"Are you sure this is the right room?" Tasuki whispered.   
  
Misara hesitated, then nodded. "Yeah, I'm pretty sure..." She whispered back.   
  
"Only pretty sure...great..." He muttered. She pinched him, then looked around one last time. Positive that no one was around, she pushed open the door, dragged Tasuki inside, and quickly shut the door behind her.   
  
"Taylor?" Misara whispered, her eyes trying to adjust to the darkness of the room. "Are you in here?"  
  
"M-Misara?" A voice cried out. "Are you really here?"   
  
Suddenly, Misara could see Taylor running toward her, and she let go of Tasuki's arm and hugged her friend tightly. "I'm so sorry!" She said loudly. "I tried to bring you back with me but I wasn't strong enough...I'm sorry Taylor..."   
  
Taylor shook her head. "It's alright Misara, you don't have to apologize."   
  
"But-" Misara started, but Taylor cut her off.   
  
"It's alright, Misara. I'm glad you came. We're so glad you're here."  
  
Misara took a step back. "What do you mean...we?"   
  
Taylor tried to hug her friend again, but Misara kept backing away.   
  
"Why are you acting so strange, Taylor?" Misara asked nervously.  
  
"I'm not..." Taylor insisted as she lit a candle on the table. Once Misara could see her friend's eyes clearly, she knew something was wrong. Taylor's eyes were cloudy, not bright like they usually were, and she had a smile on her face that didn't look like her usual smile. In fact, it looked a little forced. Misara looked at Tasuki worriedly, but he wasn't looking at her. He was watching Taylor suspiciously.   
  
Misara opened her mouth to say something, but was interrupted by the door opening. She swung around, surprised, and saw Nakago standing in the doorway.   
  
"So...the goddess returns to me. Convenient, you know. We're just about to search for a couple of Shinzahos...care to join us, Misara?" He said smirking.   
  
"No." Misara said forcefully. "I'd rather not."   
  
"Well, that's a shame." He said sadly. "After those horrible Suzaku warriors burned you alive, you still want to protect them. They are not your only responsibility, you know. You're supposed to protect me too! Besides, what do they have that Seiryu doesn't have? I promise I won't burn you alive like they did, Misara. Will you come with me now?"   
  
Misara's eyes narrowed in anger. "No!" She said again. "I'd rather die."   
  
He laughed, and she cringed at the sound. "We can arrange that..." he said.   
  
Taylor moved toward Nakago, but Misara grabbed her arm before she could reach him.   
  
"Don't, Taylor! He's-" Before she could continue, Taylor wrenched her arm out of Misara's grip.   
  
"I don't want to go to Konan with you!" She declared. "I want to stay here. I like it here."   
  
Misara stared at her, her mouth open in shock. "What're you saying?"   
  
Taylor rolled her eyes. "Hello? I-do-not-want-to-go-with-you! Get it?" She turned toward Nakago, but Misara grabbed her arm again.  
  
"Has he put a spell on you or something?" She cried. "You don't understand what you're doing! I can't let you stay here...with HIM!" She held on tighter as Taylor tried to break free. "You're coming to Konan with me!" Misara yelled loudly.   
  
"No!" Taylor cried. "Leave me alone!"   
  
"I'll give you a choice, Misara. You can go back to Konan, without your friend, or you can stay here, with me, while your friend goes safely to Konan. How about it?" Nakago said, smiling that smile of his that Misara almost couldn't stand to see.  
  
"I don't think so, blondie." She muttered, as she closed her eyes and concentrated on Chichiri and Konan. As a red light surrounded her, Taylor broke free. Misara moved to catch her friend, but Tasuki grabbed her from behind.   
  
"We've got to go, NOW!" He yelled over Misara's cries.   
  
Misara squirmed and pushed on Tasuki. "Let go of me!" She cried. "I have to get Taylor!"   
  
"She's not coming!" He bellowed. "We have to go!"   
  
"No!" Misara screamed at him, the red light getting brighter every second. "LET GO!" She looked at Taylor and saw her standing next to Nakago, glaring at Misara.   
  
Suddenly, the light became blinding, and Misara had to cover her eyes with her hands. When she opened them again, she was back in Konan, in Chichiri's room. Chichiri was standing next to her, and Tasuki was still holding on to her waist. For some reason, all the other warriors were there as well, along with Miaka, and they were all looking very worried. Hotohori, on the other hand, just looked angry.   
  
Tasuki loosened his grip on Misara, and she took the opportunity to give him a huge push into the nearest wall. She was surprised at her own anger, but it took control over her and she couldn't stop herself.   
  
"I hate you!" She screamed at him. "How dare you! You held me back! I was trying to save my friend and you held me back! Do you know what you've done? You threw her to the wolves!" He just looked at her, his eyes emotionless.  
  
"Why didn't you tell us?" He asked her. "Why didn't you say that you had to protect the warriors of Seiryu like you have to protect us?"   
  
An extremely loud "WHAT?" echoed through the room, but Misara was oblivious and continued yelling at Tasuki.  
  
"You saw what had happened to her!" Misara continued. "That is my BEST FRIEND in that HORRIBLE place and you threw her to the wolves!" Before she could say anymore, he turned away from her and started to walk away.  
  
"Just a second!" She cried. "I'm not done hating you yet!"  
  
He turned and looked at her, his eyes full of sadness, and in the back of her mind, she realized what she had done.   
  
"Oh, yes I am!" She sobbed, bursting into tears and bolting out of the room, with Hotohori hot on her heels.  



	20. Hotohori loves Misara (yay!)...but Tasuk...

  
I know a lot of you have been wanting Hotohori to get with the program and see that he really loves Misara. Well, here you are. this is the "turning chapter"!! (Twilight Zone music plays in background) Yes folks, this chapter will set the stage for the rest of the series! Excited? You should be! Keep reading and discover the fate of these poor puppets...oh, by the way, this chapter breaks my damn romantic heart...  
  
  
  
Misara kept on running, not knowing or really caring where she ended up. Oblivious to Hotohori behind her, she ran as fast as she could, eventually losing him. Minutes later, she found herself in the shrine of Suzaku. The statue gloomed over her as she lay sobbing on the floor in front of it.   
  
She lay there for a minute, cursing herself for being so cruel to Tasuki and for not rescuing Taylor earlier.  
  
This is all my fault, she thought desperately. If I hadn't agreed to this stupid goddess job, Taylor would be okay and I wouldn't feel so bad about hurting Tasuki's feelings.   
  
She sat up and rubbed the tears out of her eyes. Not that it matters, she thought bitterly. He's just some guy in a stupid world that can't take care of itself and has to get poor, unsuspecting girls to fix its problems. He doesn't know the first thing about me and he's so...  
  
She shook her head angrily. It's not like it matters, she repeated. Its not like I like him or anything! Hotohori's so much better than him! Hotohori is kind and wonderful-and I bet he wouldn't have held me back...  
  
Slamming her fist on the steps leading up to the statue, Misara sighed irritably. Hotohori doesn't love me...so why do I care about him so much? Stupid...stupid...stupid me...It doesn't matter who I love...I still hurt Tasuki's feelings and I still lost Taylor to that horrible man. I can't do anything right...  
  
"I can't do anything right..." She said out loud. Suddenly, she was embraced from behind and she turned her head to see who it was.   
  
"I'm sorry, Misara." Hotohori's voice whispered in her ear.   
  
"Why?" She sniffed, quickly wiping her eyes again.   
  
"When you told me this morning that you were in love with me...I...didn't say anything. It was stupid of me, I know." He finished quickly, then sighed. "I just wanted to ask you to forgive me for being so inconsiderate of your feelings."  
  
"That's alright..." Misara said softly. "I know how you feel about me, and it was wrong to tell you I loved you like that...I'm the one who should apologize." She turned to face him.   
  
"I know...I haven't done a very good job at protecting any of you...and I'm sorry for accepting this job and not doing-" Hotohori suddenly embraced her again, and she stopped in surprise.   
  
"Please don't talk about that right now. So many horrible things have happened to you today, and its no wonder you feel so bad. But I want you to just forget about everything now." He didn't speak for a moment, and she was suddenly too peaceful to talk. Then he continued. "You said that you know how I feel about you, and that it was wrong of you to tell me that you loved me...maybe that's true, but...it really made me see how foolish I was. I thought I was in love with Miaka all this time, but I found that I was only stubbornly holding on to something I couldn't have...and that you're the one I love."   
  
Misara suddenly became very still, too shocked to even breathe. Hotohori, noticing how tense she suddenly became, looked down.   
  
"Misara?" He asked quietly, suddenly afraid that he had said the wrong thing.   
  
She suddenly let out the breath she was holding in and looked up at him.   
  
"I'm sorry..." she said softly. "Its just...hard to believe..."   
  
Hotohori let out the breath that HE had been holding in and smiled. Misara hesitantly smiled back, then laughed and threw her arms around his neck.   
  
  
  
It was dinnertime, and neither Misara nor Hotohori were anywhere to be found. The remaining warriors sat at the table, confused and a little worried. Suddenly, Miaka waltzed in.   
  
"Hi everybody!" She said happily. When no one answered, she noticed all the glum faces. "What's wrong with all you of you?"   
  
Chichiri pointed to the empty chairs. "We can't find Misara or His Highness anywhere. It's not like Misara to miss a meal, no da."   
  
"Kind of like Miaka..." Nuriko mused.  
  
Miaka groaned. "I saw those two walking in the garden just before I came in. I didn't really want to interrupt them, so I decided to just come to dinner without telling them it was time to eat. That means more for me!" She plopped herself down into a chair.   
  
"Besides," she continued, "they're so in love I don't think they could eat right now."   
  
"WHAT??!?" Nuriko screeched.   
  
Miaka looked up from her salad. "What's gotten into you?"  
  
Nuriko was fuming. "How do you know that Hotohori's in love with her?"  
  
Miaka laughed. "Oh, he told me this afternoon. He said he realized who he truly loved and it was Misara! Oh, and I know she's in love with him. Has been since she met him." She said matter-of-factly.   
  
Nuriko stood and threw his plate at the wall, while Tasuki sat silently and stared at his food.   
  
  
  
That night, as Misara was getting ready for bed, her door slamming open interrupted her humming and dancing. She spun around in surprise and saw Tasuki standing in the doorway, looking very, very angry.   
  
"What do you think you are doing?" He said furiously.   
  
Confused, Misara held up her pajamas. "Getting ready to go to bed...?" She said.  
  
He slammed the door behind him. "That is NOT what I meant."   
  
Misara's eyes grew wider. "Well, what do you mean?"   
  
"What is this about you and...Hotohori?" He spit the word out.   
  
"Well...he's in love with me...and I'm in love with him..." Misara said, still confused.   
  
"No you're not!" Tasuki yelled.   
  
"What is that supposed to mean?" Misara said, angry now.   
  
"You may think you are, but you're not." He said.   
  
"I KNOW I am, Tasuki." Misara put her hands on her hips. "Why do you care?"   
  
"BECAUSE-" he stopped, looked around quickly, then continued. "Because I just do!" He whispered angrily.   
  
"Well, I don't see why you think you have anything to do with it! I've made up my mind, and this is what I want." Misara hissed.   
  
"You're not going to be happy with him!"   
  
"How do you know?"  
  
Tasuki grabbed her shoulders. "What's going to happen when you have to go back to your own world, huh? You're just going to have to leave him behind, you know. You're better off not getting involved with him!"  
  
"I'm going to use the wish I get to stay here with him! Why are you so against me being happy?" Misara cried.   
  
"Its not going to work that way, and you know it! You'd leave behind everything in your world just to stay here with some guy who you think you love?"  
  
"I know I love him!"  
  
"Misara, listen-"  
  
"No, you listen!" She shouted. "I'm tired of you, of all of you, telling me what's good for me and what's not! Just leave me alone!" She tore out of his grasp and ran out the door.   
  
Tasuki chased her through the hallways, waking up the rest of the Suzaku warriors and Miaka, who all followed the two of them to the shrine of Suzaku. Misara ran up the steps and threw open the doors. Suddenly, she turned to face all of them and they stopped on the steps in front of her.   
  
"Just leave me alone!" She cried again. "I don't want to be your stupid goddess anymore! I just want to be happy-why don't' you understand that?" She shrieked, then turned and ran to the statue, where she found her ring on the floor. She picked it up quickly, then spun around once more. The warriors of Suzaku and their priestess stood in the doorway, Hotohori and Tasuki in front of them all. The two ran toward her, but all she saw was Tasuki, and she backed up angrily.   
  
"Stop!" She screeched. They stopped in their tracks, but Tasuki started moving forward again.   
  
"Don't do it, Misara...please!" He said quickly.   
  
"Stop telling me what to do and where to go and who to love!" She shouted at him, oblivious to Hotohori, who thought she was yelling at him.  
  
She put her ring back on her finger, and its coldness ran through her.   
  
"I want to go home!" She cried. "I don't want to stay here any longer!"   
  
A red light surrounded her, but instead of its usual warmth, it was cold and harsh. She didn't care. As she took one last look at her warriors, she noticed for the first time Hotohori, and her confused mind suddenly realized her mistake.   
  
"Hotohori!" She screamed, running at him and trying to escape the red light that was swallowing her. He started to run toward her, his face full of fear.  
  
If I can get to him, I'll be alright...If I can be with him, nothing will hurt me any more...  
  
Just before she fell into his open arms, the light swallowed her and she disappeared.  
  
  
  
Do not despair! This is not the end! I promise, there's more to come! (please don't throw things at me!) I'm working hard on the next chapter, since my desire to write this has returned to me! If you haven't noticed, I've been kind of slacking off...But today I got the best idea for the story and it'll cut this story down by at least 5 chapters, since I am the worst at summarizing. Anyway, I hope you enjoyed chapter 20...(20? Jeez, that's a lot) and if you're not too mad at me, you can read my newest fan fic, Devotion! Yeah, I know the title stinks, but I couldn't think of anything else. It's about Hotohori! Yay! Let me know if you like it or if you hate me for being so cruel to my Fushigi puppets...Oh yeah, and since chapter 18 was the "scary summoning chapter, I figured that was an important one, and it finished the story to that point at exactly 60 pages (at least in my word program with my font) but I thought that was really funny! Uh…nevermind…sorry…  



	21. Misara is finally home...but now she's g...

  
When Misara finally opened her eyes, the sudden glare of the sun caught her off-guard and she had to shut them again quickly. She sat up and shielded her eyes, trying to look around to see where she was. She had ended up in her mother's garden, but the ground was covered in snow and there were no flowers growing. A little sad but excited to see her mother, she stood and ran over to the house. For some reason, all the doors were locked, and her mother wasn't there. As she looked through the window, she saw that there were dishes piled in the sink and the whole house looked dirty, something she had rarely seen before, since her mother kept things as neat as possible.   
  
"I wonder what's going on..." She said out loud. Then she remembered her bedroom window. She had opened it before she left to air out her room, and it was just big enough for her to crawl inside. Her mother hadn't closed it, as she was apt to do when Misara forgot to shut it herself. Besides, she wasn't exactly dressed for winter, and she was getting cold. So she hoisted herself up and after a few moments of struggling, pulled herself inside. Her room was messy as usual, but she didn't have time to look around. She ran around the house, sure her mother was there somewhere, but didn't find her. Still confused, she went to the kitchen and cooked a frozen TV dinner she had found in the freezer.   
  
After she had hopped around excitedly at the thought of using a fork instead of the chopsticks she had never gotten used to using, she sat at the table and thought about where her mother would be. There was a calendar on the table, and three days had been crossed off since she had left.   
  
"Huh...time must move differently in each world..." she said to herself, but didn't really stop to ponder it, because the second she thought about that other world, she remembered Hotohori. Her ring was still on her hand, where it felt strange after going so long without wearing it.   
  
I left Hotohori...I left Taylor and all my other friends...I left without thinking...and now I can't go back...  
  
She felt like crying, and her dinner looked very unappetizing. She tossed it in the trash and sat on the couch in her living room. Grabbing the remote, she turned on the television, trying to think about something else. There was nothing on TV but soap operas, and she really didn't feel like watching one of those.   
  
My life is a soap opera, she thought bitterly, a strange and twisted soap opera.  
  
Suddenly, she remembered something Miaka had said about her brother...that he was connected to that other world in some way! She didn't remember his name or where he lived in Japan, but she could at least try to find him.   
  
Japan can't be that big...right? She reasoned with herself.   
  
She ran to her room to throw some clothes and other necessities in a bag. Writing a quick "don't worry-I'm all right" note to her mother, she jumped in her car.   
  
Do I even remember how to drive?  
  
  
When she got to the airport, she parked her car in the long-term parking lot, not sure when she'd be back, and ran inside. When she finally got up to the counter, she frantically asked the attendant when the next flight to Tokyo was. Luckily, she had arrived just in time to catch the flight that was leaving in 15 minutes. Her mother had an account at the airport because she flew around so much, and Misara bought her ticket using the money in her mother's account.   
  
I'll pay her back, she promised herself as she ran toward the gate and boarded the plane just before it left.   
  
As she settled into her seat, suddenly exhausted, she stuffed her bag underneath her feet and grabbed a pillow from the nearest flight attendant. Leaning against the window, she watched as the snowy ground grew farther and farther away, and when they were in the clouds and the ground wasn't visible anymore, she got ready to fall asleep. Suddenly, a terrible pain gripped her heart, a warning that one of her warriors were in danger. She gritted her teeth and tried not to let her pain show. It subsided after a while, but it left her breathless and scared. But she was too exhausted to think about it, and quickly fell asleep, but not before praying that it wouldn't happen again.  
  
  
Hours later, after Misara had woken up, eaten a Chinese airline dinner (which tasted nothing like the food in Konan) and given up trying to watch the in-flight movie, the pilot announced that they would be landing soon in Tokyo. Misara stood in the aisle and stretched thankfully, then went to the nearest bathroom and took some soap, as was her habit when flying. They landed not much later, and Misara, in the hustle and bustle, was the last one off the plane. Wondering where she was going to stay and how she was going to pay for it, she wasn't watching where she was going, and ran into the back of some guy. She looked up quickly to apologize, but was caught off-guard when he jumped back in surprise and started to laugh. He ran a hand through his blondish hair and said something to her, but it was in Japanese. She suddenly realized that she couldn't understand him the way she could understand Miaka in the other world. He saw by her sudden spaced-out look that she didn't understand him, and before he could say anything else, the dark-haired man standing next to him took off his sunglasses and leaned over.   
  
"You're Misara, I take it?" He said in pretty good English.   
  
Taken a little aback, she hesitated before answering. "Yes...but how did you know that?" Before he could answer, she brightened. "Are you Miaka's brother? She said-" Before she finished, the dark-haired one laughed very loudly.   
  
"No!" He chuckled. "But HE is. I think he jumped because you really DO look a lot like Miaka." He said, jabbing his thumb in the direction of the other man, who just shrugged sheepishly.   
  
Misara smiled. "I thought maybe you could help me...you see, I came back from-" The dark-haired guy interrupted her once more.   
  
"Let's talk somewhere else..." he said, glancing around.   
  
  
Minutes later, they were in a small restaurant, sitting in a booth far away from other customers. The dark-haired one, who had introduced himself as Tetsuya, motioned to Keisuke, Miaka's brother, and he pulled a red book out of his jacket pocket.   
  
Misara glanced at it curiously. "What is that?"   
  
Keisuke sighed heavily, then handed it over to her. She opened it, looked at the first page, then handed it back without another word.   
  
"Well?" He asked. Misara shrugged.  
  
"I can't read that." She said, a little sarcastically.   
  
A bit flustered, he hesitated before saying, "Oh...right. Sorry."   
  
Tetsuya sighed. "That book is called 'The Universe of the Four Gods' and it's the book Miaka and Yui were sucked into. The book tells the story of everything that happens to them, and what happens to you as well, since you're a part of the story. Even when you left the book, you were still apart of it, and that's how we knew you were coming for a visit."   
  
Misara sat up straighter. "Then you know what's going on right now?" She asked excitedly.   
  
"Well...we'll get to that in a second. First of all, since this book has everything in it, it has conversations that you had but might not remember. For instance, when you got home, you were sad because you couldn't go back to the book world. But when you first got to the other world, Taitskun told you that it WAS possible, but very difficult."  
  
Suddenly, Misara remembered. "She said I shouldn't go home unless I was really in danger or my duties were completed..." She trailed off, knowing that she hadn't come home for either of those reasons.   
  
"I don't know if you can still go back, since you came home because...well, we don't know if you can go back." Keisuke said.   
  
"At least you could try." Tetsuya offered.   
  
Misara nodded. "I have to get back as soon as possible." She said firmly. "Can you tell me what's going on right now?"   
  
The two guys looked at each other, then Keisuke shrugged and opened the book to where it had left off. From the strange look on his face, Misara guessed that something was wrong.   
  
"What?" She asked frantically. "What is it?"   
  
Before he could answer, that nagging pain came to her again, not as harsh this time, but definitely a forewarning.   
  
She shook her head. "Nevermind..." she whispered. "you don't have to tell me. I already know." She stood abruptly and headed toward the bathroom, taking her duffel bag with her.   
  
"What are you going to do?" Tetsuya asked worriedly.   
  
She turned and smiled. "Thanks for your help. I really appreciate it, but I have to go back now. I just realized what I have to do."   
  
Keisuke stood as well, and smiled back at her. "Just make sure my sister doesn't get into too much trouble."   
  
She nodded. "Now, if you'll excuse me, boys, I have a job to finish." She went into the bathroom and almost fell over. The pain that she had been hiding from them had almost gotten the best of her. She grasped the counter and pulled herself up.   
  
Well, I started this journey in a bathroom, so there's no reason why I shouldn't start to finish it in one.   
  
Hoisting the duffel bag back onto her arm, she gripped the ring on her hand with her other.   
  
Please take me back, she whispered to it, closing her eyes tightly. I was wrong about not wanting to be the goddess...I want to protect my friends...please...   
  
Although she couldn't see it, she could feel that familiar red warmth surrounding her once more. When she opened her eyes again, she was back in the snow, but it wasn't back at home. She stood on top of a mountain, and saw in the distance two figures, apparently fighting.   
  
One of them, she knew, was Nuriko.  
  
This time, I'm going to protect him...like I'm supposed to do...  



	22. Ice, bones, and transparent hotties...an...

  
Misara dropped her duffel bag in the snow and ran toward them. Suddenly, she felt Nuriko get hit with something, and she lost control. Nuriko's symbol burned on her chest as she ran toward Nuriko's attacker, faster than humanly possible. Her eyes clouded over with red as rage overtook her, and her mind didn't have a chance to think as she attacked.  
  
  
  
Misara's eyes flew open to see the smiling faces of her friends around her, Nuriko included. She sat up quickly and hugged the purple-haired warrior.   
  
"Nuriko!" She cried. "You're alive!"  
  
"Thanks to you!" Nuriko laughed.   
  
"What do you mean?" Misara asked, suddenly confused. She didn't remember anything except landing on top of the mountain in the snow and seeing Nuriko being attacked. Everything else after that was a blur.   
  
"You fought that guy that was attacking Nuriko, no da!" Chichiri said happily, as she took turns hugging each of them.   
  
"I don't remember a thing!" Misara laughed, happy to be back. "But if you say so, I guess I'll have to believe you!"  
  
"You were bleeding and all cut up when we found you two. Nuriko didn't have a scratch on him, but he was going crazy waiting for Mitsukake to come." Tamahome said.   
  
Misara smiled at Nuriko, then gasped. "Where is your hair?" She cried, and everyone laughed again as Nuriko shrugged.   
  
"I cut it off." He said matter-of-factly. "Just because." He added quickly before Misara could ask.  
  
She smiled once more, then suddenly, she noticed something else. "Where's Hotohori?"  
  
They're faces suddenly became sad, and Misara eyes widened.   
  
"What?" She cried. "Did something happen to him?"  
  
Miaka put her hand on Misara's shoulder. "Well," she began. "after you left...he was so sad, because Taitskun said you could never come back. He would hardly come out of his room, and when he did, he wouldn't talk to anybody. We tried to cheer him up, but..." she trailed off.   
  
"But he's alright?" Misara asked frantically.   
  
"Well, besides his broken heart, he's fine. As far as we know now." Tamahome said quietly.   
  
Misara sighed in relief. "At least he's alright...I couldn't stand it if he wasn't. But..." she added softly, "I didn't want to break his heart."  
  
  
  
Minutes later, they all plodded the short distance to a large door, where the Shinzaho of Genbu was supposedly located. After Nuriko threw the gigantic boulder out of the way, he opened the doors and they all walked inside. Misara shivered, and Chichri looked over at her.   
  
"Cold?" He asked her, smiling.   
  
She nodded. "I'm not really dressed for winter." She said, looking down at her short-sleeved shirt. At least she had jeans on, she thought to herself. Before he could stop him, Tasuki had whipped off his outer coat and put it around her shoulders.   
  
"Oh...thank you..." She said hesitantly. She looked down at her feet, not sure of what else to say to him, but it seemed he wasn't looking for a reply.   
  
Suddenly, shards of ice flew around them, and everyone ducked.   
  
"What are you doing here?" A voice boomed around them. Tamahome stood up.   
  
"Show yourself, coward!" He yelled into the dark. Suddenly, two figures appeared out of nowhere. One had long, white hair, with a black patch over his eye, while the other appeared very young and was carrying a bow. Both were almost transparent, like ghosts, only they were deadly ones.   
  
"Wait!" Miaka cried. "I'm the Priestess of Suzaku! Please don't hurt us!"   
  
The young one scowled, but the other put his hand on his shoulder. "What do you want?" he asked.  
  
"We want the Shinzaho of Genbu, so we can summon Suzaku." Miaka said, rather timidly.   
  
This time, the white-haired one narrowed his eyes. "Prove it."   
  
"Prove what?" Miaka asked.   
  
"That you are indeed the Priestess of Suzaku."  
  
"How am I supposed to prove that?" She asked, a little angry.   
  
"We shall put you to a test, to see if you are worthy."   
  
Miaka hesitated, then stepped forward. "Alright. Test me."   
  
"Miaka! You don't have to do this!" Tamahome cried.   
  
"I already promised!" She yelled at him, then turned back around. "Go ahead."  
  
"Take off your clothes." The white-haired one said.   
  
"WHAT???" Everyone screamed.   
  
"Are you serious?" Misara cried.   
  
"What kind of people are you?" Tasuki growled at them, but the cries of the Suzaku warriors were ignored as Miaka started to strip. Suddenly, Tamahome ran forward, trying to get to Miaka, but slammed into an invisible wall.   
  
"You won't be able to melt this ice wall." The young one said. Tamahome began to beat on the wall with his fists.   
  
"Miaka!" He cried, as ice started to climb up her legs and engulf her.   
  
Miaka didn't move from where she stood, and let the ice surround her completely.   
  
"She'll die in there!" Nuriko shrieked.   
  
The young man with the bow shrugged, and Misara started to get fidgety. And angry. Suddenly, she couldn't take it anymore, and ran toward Miaka, forgetting about the ice wall. To everyone's complete surprise, the wall shimmered as she passed right through it, and when Tamahome tried to follow Misara, it had frozen like before and he couldn't pass. The two strangers were too shocked to do anything as Misara stood next to Miaka. Nuriko's symbol flashed on the young girl, and one swing was all it took to smash the ice around Miaka, who collapsed breathlessly onto the ground at the same time as Misara.   
  
The ice wall disappeared, and the Suzaku warriors rushed toward their priestess. As Tamahome desperately tried to dress Miaka as fast as he could, Nuriko helped Misara to her feet and winked at her.   
  
They were interrupted by the two strangers. "I am Hikitsu." The white-haired one said calmly. "And this is Tomite." He gestured to the younger man. "We are two warriors of Genbu."   
  
"What??" Nuriko cried.   
  
"You've got to be...over 200 years old!" Chichiri exclaimed.   
  
"Our spirits have remained here to guard the Shinzaho until it is needed." Hikitsu explained. "Our bodies may be gone, but as you can see, our will to fight still remains." He motioned to the cave around them, and for the first time, the warriors of Suzaku noticed the thousands of bones scattered about.   
  
"Ewww..." Misara said quietly, backing up a little.   
  
"So are you going to give us the Shinzaho or what?" Tasuki said loudly.   
  
Tomite snorted. "We won't give it to YOU, that's for certain."   
  
"What was that?" Tasuki growled.   
  
Hikitsu interrupted them. "You proved your worth because you have the Goddess of the Sky with you. She demonstrated her ability to protect you, thus proving you are who you claim to be. The Goddess cannot be held against her own will, so you could not have imprisoned her with spells and other such tricks. Therefore, we believe that since she is the Goddess of the Sky, you must be the Priestess of Suzaku and her warriors. And we must give you the Shinzaho." He turned toward another large set of doors. "This way, please."   
  
"Way to go, Misara!" Miaka said quietly as they followed him. Nuriko just winked at her again.   
  
They followed the two Genbu warriors into a large, well-lit room. On the far end of the room stood a pedestal, and on top of the pedestal sat a beautiful necklace. Miaka ran over and picked it up.   
  
"It's so pretty..." she breathed.   
  
"It belonged to the Priestess of Genbu. Once she summoned Genbu, her necklace stayed behind as she went back to her own world." Hikitsu said softly.   
  
"Then, the Priestess of Genbu HAD to go back to her own world?" Tamahome said, his forehead furrowed in thought.  
  
Miaka looked at Tamahome for a moment, then forced a smile. "Now we can summon Suzaku!" She said happily.   
  
Tomite raised his eyebrows. "You can't summon Suzaku with just that..."  
  
"What?" Miaka turned to him. "What do you mean?"  
  
"I mean, you need the Byakko Shinzaho as well." He answered, a little sardonically.   
  
Everyone groaned out loud, and after a few moments of silence, Misara spoke up.   
  
"Well, we might as well go now, right?" She asked them. Everyone nodded slowly.   
  
After they bid farewell to the Genbu warriors, they walked out once more into the bright sunlight. Misara turned back to wave, but they were gone.   
  
"They must have been guarding the Shinzaho until another Priestess came for it...and now that they don't need to guard it anymore, their souls can rest." Chichiri said softly. Everyone else turned around to see, when suddenly, a wolf jumped out of the snow and snatched the Shinzaho from Miaka's hands. Miaka cried out and started to chase it, with Tamahome and Misara trying to catch up to her.   
  
A while later, Misara was wandering around in the woods, calling Miaka's name, when Miaka appeared from behind a tree and grabbed her arm.   
  
"Shhh!" She whispered loudly.   
  
"Miaka!" Misara cried. "We've been looking all over for you!"   
  
Miaka looked at the ground for a moment. "There's something I need to tell you..."   
  
  
  
Misara leaned up against the tree, astonished. "Let me get this straight...you have to...with Nakago? To get the Shinzaho back?"   
  
Miaka nodded miserably. "I wanted you to come with me, just to make sure he didn't try anything funny, you know?"   
  
Misara sighed. "I know what you mean...but...what about Tamahome?"  
  
Tears started to form in the corners of Miaka's eyes, and Misara realized that Miaka had already thought about him.   
  
"I'm sorry." Misara said quickly. Miaka nodded.   
  
After a few moments of silence, Misara had an idea. She knew it wasn't the best, but she was willing to do it for Miaka. She told Miaka of her plan. Miaka refused at first, but eventually gave in to Misara's pleadings when she realized that Misara was doing it for her.   
  
Sighing, Miaka took a small knife out of her boot, and Misara undid the ribbon on the end of her long braid of hair.   
  
  



	23. A new haircut...and a stolen necklace

  
Some time later, Misara was walking quietly through the woods toward Nakago's camp. Miaka's clothes didn't fit her right, as Miaka was a little taller, but the only thing she could really think about was how her fingers kept flying up to her head and running through her hair. It was the strangest feeling, and her head felt so light. Before she could ponder Miaka's hair-cutting credentials, she arrived in the camp. The sun had just set, so it was dark, and Misara was safe in the dark, as long as Nakago didn't look too closely. It was inside, in the light, that she was most afraid of.   
  
Suddenly, there was a hand on her shoulder, and she stopped herself just in time from screaming. She spun around and found herself looking at the man she was most afraid of.   
  
"So you've come to me at last, Priestess of Suzaku." Nakago laughed.   
  
Misara was about to correct him when she remembered that she was SUPPOSED to look like Miaka this time, so she said nothing. She had forgotten how handsome he was, but as soon as the thought crossed her mind, she reprimanded herself for it.   
  
You're supposed to get that Shinzaho back, stupid! She yelled at herself. And rescue Taylor from Nakago's evil clutches, a voice echoed in the back of her mind.   
  
Miaka had finally told her about Yui and now that Misara had seen all that Nakago could do, she desperately wanted to get Taylor out of this world. She had wanted to contact Hotohori, to let him know she was alright, but decided that she had to do this first. She didn't want Taylor to end up hating her for the same reason Yui hated Miaka.   
  
Nakago was looking at her curiously when she looked up at him again, and she realized that she must have looked strange, standing there and not doing anything. He shrugged.  
  
"I think I can guess why you've come, Priestess. You want this, don't you?" He said, pointing at the Shinzaho which he was wearing around his neck.   
  
Misara laughed nervously. "That's the reason, alright! Now, I'll just take it and be on my way, okay?" She reached for it quickly, but not quickly enough. He grabbed her arm and began pushing her in the direction of one of the tents.   
  
"Now, now, Priestess. Let's not be rude! Come, sit with me for a while and I'll get you something to eat..." As much as Misara didn't want to go in the light, the thought of food was almost too much to bear. She hadn't eaten since her meal on the plane, and it wasn't a very big one either. She was starving, although she hated to admit it, and reluctantly let herself be propelled into the nearest tent.   
  
He sat her down, a little roughly, at the table and set a plate full of food in front of her. She ate slowly, nervous because he was sitting in a chair not 10 feet from her and was watching her the entire time. Determined not to let him see her face completely, she avoided his eyes and kept her eyes on her food. It was pretty good, she had to give him that. Of course, she didn't have to give him anything, she reminded herself.   
  
"Of course," he started, "I'm not just going to give the Shinzaho to you...where's the fun in that?"   
  
"You stole it from us in the first place." Misara muttered to her plate.   
  
"Oh...right..." he said, laughing. Misara scowled, but didn't say anything. Then she heard him stand up and she knew he was coming over to the table.  
  
Get the Shinzaho and rescue Taylor. Get the Shinzaho and rescue Taylor. Get the-  
  
He grabbed her chin and made her look at him. "You know, it's only polite when a soldier takes off his armor and waits fo-" he stopped as he looked closer at her, then he let go of her face and began to laugh. Misara visibly cringed at the sound, but that only made him laugh louder.   
  
Misara waited until he was finished laughing before speaking. As he wiped his eyes, she stood up.   
  
"Now that I've entertained you, are you going to give me the Shinzaho or not?"   
  
He ignored her question. "You were doing a pretty decent job of imitating the Priestess of Suzaku, Misara. I have to hand it to you, you almost had me fooled. Almost." He finished angrily. "I don't like to be fooled, Misara."   
  
She snorted. "Well, forgive me for fooling you, almighty Nakago, but I was just trying to get back something that you STOLE." He smiled evilly at her.   
  
"Well, I wouldn't put it in so harsh of terms..."  
  
"I would." She shot back. "You stole it from us and now I've come to get it back. Whatever I have to do." She smiled back at him. "Of course, the smartest thing for you to do would be for you to just hand it over, but you're not exactly known to do the smartest things, are you?"  
  
He clapped his hand over his heart. "Why must you hurt me so?" He asked sarcastically.   
  
Misara rolled her eyes and sighed, but before she could think of a comeback, he reached over and grabbed her wrist.   
  
"What if I don't want to give it to you? How are you going to get it back?"  
  
Misara hesitated. "Uh...I'd have to...beat you up."  
  
"Of course, you know how your Priestess was going to get it back, don't you?"   
  
"Yes, I know." Misara said, scowling. "I wasn't going to let her, either."   
  
Nakago smiled. "It wouldn't have worked anyway."  
  
"What do you mean by that?"  
  
He didn't answer, but smiled even more, irritating Misara. She tried to pull her hand out of his, but his grip was too tight.   
  
"Does Tamahome still love that silly Priestess?" Nakago asked her.   
  
"Of course he does!" Misara cried. "Why do you think I wouldn't let Miaka come here?"  
  
"I thought you came because you missed me." That stupid smile wouldn't leave his face.  
  
"Why would I miss you? You must have been dreaming!"   
  
"Well, when two people love each other, they usually miss each other when they're apart."  
  
"I'm not in love with you!"  
  
"Yes you are! You just don't know it yet..."  
  
Misara tugged on her arm. "Let go of my hand!"  
  
"You're in love with...the Emperor, Hotohori, aren't you? At least, you think you are..."  
  
Déjà vu, Misara thought. "What is with you people??" She said out loud.   
  
"Whatever do you mean, my dear child?"   
  
"Never mind! Let go of me!"   
  
"Not until you confess your love for me, Misara."   
  
"No!"  
  
"No?" He asked, delighted. "Meaning-you won't? Which means you do! Oh, I'm so happy!"  
  
Misara was getting pretty fed up with his mind games.   
  
"So tell me, Misara, why do you fall in love with men from this world? Don't you know that you can never be together?"   
  
"That's not true..." Misara whispered. Tasuki had said the same thing.   
  
"Of course, we can be together. The summoning of Seiryu will see to that. Once we get the second Shinzaho, Seiryu will be summoned and your Suzaku idiots will be powerless. Why don't you stick with the winning side?"  
  
Misara didn't speak, but instead concentrated on wrenching her arm out of his grip. He grabbed her other wrist.  
  
"Stop it." He said dangerously. The change in his voice made Misara stop struggling and look up at him. His eyes were flashing, and it was rather frightening. Misara stopped moving and stood very still.   
  
His grip loosened and he dropped her arms. There were red marks on Misara's wrists, but she didn't notice them as she watched him go back to his chair and sit down.   
  
"Give me back the Shinzaho..." she muttered through her teeth.   
  
He didn't smile this time. "No." He said simply. "You're not strong enough to fight me. Even you know that. If you want it back, you'll have to take it from me."   
  
Misara scowled. There's nothing I can do right now, she thought. Damn...  
  
She turned from him and walked out of the tent and into the starry night. After a few minutes of walking though the woods, she remembered Taylor. Turning back around, she ran right into him. In her anger, she hadn't even noticed that he was following her.   
  
"By the way," he said, "Taylor isn't here."  
  
"What do you mean?" Misara said frantically.   
  
"She went with Lady Yui to find the second Shinzaho." Nakago pointed toward the west. Misara spun on her heel and walked away from him. "Be careful, my love! There are scary things out there!" He shouted after her.   
  
  
As Misara wandered through the forest she was too angry to think about Nakago, so she tried desperately to think of something else. Suddenly, she heard her name being called, and Chichiri appeared up ahead, searching through the trees.   
  
"Chichiri!" She cried as she ran toward him.   
  
"There you are!" He said when he saw her. "Where have you been??"  
  
"Uh..." Misara wasn't sure what to say to him. She definitely wasn't going to tell him about Nakago.   
  
"Never mind...I won't ask you about it." He said quietly.  
  
"Thank you." Misara answered.   
  
"Let's go, alright? The others are waiting for you."  
  
After a moment of silence, Misara spoke. "Alright."  



	24. Misara meets cute twins...and gets a lit...

  
After the silent walk back, Misara and Chichiri discovered that only Tasuki, Mitsukake, Nuriko and Chiriko were waiting for them. Tasuki tried to explain what had happened. Apparently, Miaka had wanted to go back to look for Misara with Chichiri, so she took off by herself, trying to catch up to Chichiri, and telling them to keep going without her. Tamahome had followed Miaka as well. Chichiri said he didn't see either of them while he was searching for Misara, so the five of them stood around for a few moments, wondering what to do. Finally, Chichiri spoke.  
  
"I guess we should go on to Ciro and hope they catch up, no da." He said hesitantly, not really wanting to leave them behind. The others nodded slowly.   
  
A little discouraged and worried, they began the trek through the desert. Misara had declined the offer of riding on horseback, deciding that she would rather walk for a while.   
  
After a few minutes, she regretted her decision, but didn't say anything. Instead, she stopped for a second and pulled off her shoes and socks and hurriedly rolled up the bottom of her jeans, then ran to catch up to the others. After about an hour, Tasuki offered her a ride once more, and she gladly accepted. Feeling a little awkward about being so close to him, especially after the last time she saw him, she didn't say much as he tried to make small talk.   
  
He's the reason I left, she told herself. He made me so angry that I lost all my reason and went home...and left Hotohori alone.   
  
Suddenly, as if he had read her mind (and she wasn't so sure that he didn't) Chichiri told her that once they were in Ciro, he was going to try to contact Hotohori, and that Misara could talk to him again. Very relieved and happy, she put a little more effort into being friendly to Tasuki.   
  
After all, she thought, he's always been so nice to me. I suppose he just didn't want me to get hurt, that's all. He IS my friend, after all.   
  
They rode through the night, each of them growing more worried by the hour about Miaka and Tamahome, when they suddenly saw the lights of the city in the distance. With renewed spirits, they hurried toward the city as dawn broke.   
  
While wandering the city of Ciro, looking for a place to stay, they were invited into the home of a very nice woman, who gave them everything they needed and told them that they could stay as long as they liked. So they decided to wait there for Miaka and Tamahome to return.   
  
  
By the next day, Chichiri was rather worried. Miaka and Tamahome hadn't come back yet, and he hadn't been able to contact Hotohori since they arrived in Ciro. He tried many times, but something was blocking him. He didn't know what it was, but he was glad Misara was asleep and not thinking about Hotohori. Misara had been sleeping all day, mostly at the fault of Tasuki. The previous night, he and Nuriko had taken Misara to a nearby bar and let her have a drink of sake, and then didn't try to stop her from having anymore. Chichiri had really let them have it when Tasuki walked in the door after midnight, carrying Misara, who had passed out. Tasuki wasn't in great shape himself, and had not really paid any attention to Chichiri as he was being lectured. Nuriko had just went off to bed and left Tasuki to fend for himself. Tasuki was up now, being used to drinking the stuff, but Misara wasn't and she stayed sleeping in her room. When Tasuki came out of his room, Chichiri had yelled at him again for it, but apparently Tasuki didn't remember much. He thought the entire thing was hilarious, and then had proceeded to tell Chichiri about how Misara had danced on the table with Nuriko and a bowl on her head.   
  
"She'll be so hung over when she wakes up!" Tasuki had laughed as he headed back to his room where another bottle of sake waited. Mitsukake and Chiriko were busy too, the healer trying out some new medicine and Chiriko reading all day, and since Nuriko hadn't shown his face yet, the monk was left alone to worry.   
  
By late afternoon, Misara had wandered downstairs, holding her head and looking for Tasuki with murder in her eyes. Chichiri pointed out the direction of Mitsukake, who had given her some medicine to make her headache go away. She came back and sat with Chichiri, muttering something about aspirin. After a few minutes, she felt good enough to talk, and asked Chichiri about contacting Hotohori. A little scared as to how she might react, he hesitantly told her that he just couldn't do it, that something was blocking him from using his magic. She took it better than he expected and just nodded silently. A few seconds later, she looked at him again.   
  
"What did you say?"   
  
  
It was about an hour later when Tasuki came downstairs, and although Misara's head didn't hurt so badly anymore, she yelled at him so much that he finally ran back up to his room and locked the door. Incredibly frustrated, Misara sat back down next to Chichiri, who looked a little frightened. Suddenly, she shot out of her seat, her eyes wide and her knees shaking.   
  
"Misara! What's wrong?" Chichiri asked worriedly.   
  
"Tamahome is..." She couldn't think of the words to describe it. "He...his life force is...gone..."  
  
  
The five warriors of Suzaku huddled around Misara, who had collapsed on the floor. Once Chichiri had told them of her outburst, Mitsukake examined her and told them that the loss of Tamahome's life force in her body and the aftermath of being drunk had led to her collapsing like she did. As Chichiri threw a rather mean look at Tasuki and Nuriko, Misara suddenly woke, and sat up quickly, causing her to have to lie back down again as all the blood had rushed out of her head. After a few moments, she felt good enough to sit up.   
  
"What happened to Tamahome?" Chichiri asked her worriedly.   
  
She shook her head slowly. "I...don't know." She admitted. "I just...suddenly felt an absence...in my heart...and I knew it was Tamahome."  
  
The others looked at each other worriedly. "Do you think we should try to find him?" Nuriko asked.   
  
Misara shook her head again. "I...don't know where he is anymore. I mean, I can't feel him...so I don't know where to start looking for him."  
  
"What about Miaka?" Tasuki asked. "Is she alright?"   
  
Misara shrugged, a look of helplessness on her face. "I don't know..." was all she said.   
  
Faced with the realization that they could do nothing, the warriors of Suzaku sat down around the table a little angrily. Misara sat with them, ashamed that she couldn't help either, even with her powers. Suddenly, she once again felt something from Tamahome. It felt as if his life force was slowly returning. Just as she was about to speak, the door burst open and an old man ran in.   
  
"Are you the warriors of Suzaku?" He asked hurriedly. They nodded, confused, and he continued. "You've got to get out of here now! Your priestess is in trouble and you're in an illusion!"   
  
Everyone jumped up. "Who are you?" Nuriko cried.   
  
"I am Tokaki, of the Byakko Seven." He said simply.   
  
"What do you mean, we're in an illusion?" Chiriko asked, confused.   
  
"One of the Seiryu warriors has made an illusion of Ciro and you walked right into it. In reality, the six of you have been sitting in the desert for days and if you don't get out of this illusion, you'll die."   
  
With no other choice, the warriors of Suzaku and Misara followed the old man out of the city. He turned around and pointed behind them, and when they turned to look, the entire city had vanished.   
  
"I found Tamahome." Tokaki said as they hurried off. "He fell off a cliff, but somehow, he's alright. He's going to catch up with us soon."   
  
Everyone sighed with relief as they reached the cliffs. Suddenly, a scream rang out and everyone knew instantly that it was Miaka. They hurried up as fast as they could, but when they got there, they found that Tamahome had already beaten them there. He was fighting with a boy who looked like...Amiboshi? Misara rubbed her eyes frantically.  
  
"Amiboshi?" she cried. As she shouted, a body that was lying on the ground groaned and moved. With a closer look, Misara saw that he, too, looked like Amiboshi.   
  
"Amiboshi!" She cried again, running toward the boy lying on the ground. She knelt down next to him. "Are you alright?"   
  
He turned his head and looked up at her. "Misara?" He asked softly.  
  
"Get away from him!" The other boy cried.   
  
Misara ignored him. "Are you hurt?" She asked Amiboshi.   
  
He shook his head very slowly. "I wanted to tell you something..." he said.   
  
"I said, get away from my brother!" The other boy cried out again, but Tamahome wouldn't let him through. Suddenly, he got past Tamahome and ran over to where Amiboshi lay. He picked up his brother. "Get away from him, you Suzaku demon." He said angrily.   
  
Amiboshi looked up as his brother. "But...Suboshi...she's not..."   
  
But it was too late. Suboshi backed away from her, still carrying his brother.   
  
"I wanted to...tell her something..." Amiboshi said softly.   
  
"What could you possibly have to say to THEM?" Suboshi cried.   
  
"I wanted to say...that' I'm sorry..." Amiboshi said, then closed his eyes.   
  
His brother looked shocked, then turned back to Misara. "Leave him alone." He said angrily.   
"He's not going to fight with you anymore." Suddenly, he turned and ran away, leaving a stunned Misara and some very confused Suzaku warriors.   
  
"Tamahome!" Miaka's cry rang out, and they saw her running toward him, apparently alright. Except, Misara noticed, for the fact that she wasn't wearing hardly any clothes. But she seemed okay as Tokaki took them back to the real Ciro. It was there that they met Subaru, an old woman who was also one of the Byakko Seven. She told them that the third and remaining member of Byakko was Tatara, and that he had the Byakko Shinzaho. She also told them that he had disappeared the previous day, and that she couldn't find him anywhere.   
  



	25. An awful realization...and a broken plat...

The warriors of Suzaku, Miaka and Misara spent the night at Tokaki and Subaru's home. The next morning, everyone was exhausted and slept in longer than usual. When most of them did wake up, they walked around lazily and didn't do much. However, there was some noticeable tension between Miaka and Tamahome, but no one could figure it out. Misara was too tired to pay much attention, but she couldn't help noticing the outburst at lunch. It seemed Miaka had made lunch, along with Subaru and Tokaki's daughter, whose name Misara couldn't recall but didn't really care about. But when she heard that Miaka had made lunch, she knew nothing good would come of it. In fact, the lunch that Miaka made tasted horrible, and Tamahome for some reason told her just that. Horrified, Miaka ran out of the room, while the rest of them just stared at Tamahome.   
  
"That wasn't very nice, no da..." Chichiri said in awed voice.   
  
But Misara was a little sick of the way Tamahome was acting, and she decided that he didn't deserve to be let off so easily. Besides, she reasoned with herself, she was tired, and when she was tired, she got cranky. She stood and threw her plate of food at Tamahome.   
  
"You jerk."   
  
She didn't stay to find out what he would do, but instead went to find Miaka. She finally found her by the edge of the river, and sat down heavily next to her friend.   
  
"Hey."  
  
Miaka sniffed in reply.   
  
"I know you probably want to be alone, but I just wanted to see if I could help. Is everything alright between you and Tamahome?"  
  
Miaka swallowed. "No."  
  
"Do you mind if I ask what happened?"  
  
Her friend shook her head. "He told me that he didn't think we should love each other anymore." She trailed off as she started to cry again.   
  
Misara stared at her in amazement. "Why?"  
  
Miaka shrugged violently. "I don't know! He just...did...."  
  
Misara grew silent, and the two of them sat there for a few minutes before Misara stood up. "Do you mind if I talk to him?" she asked Miaka.  
  
Miaka hesitated.   
  
"I know it's none of my business-" Misara said quickly. "But I want to help..."  
  
Finally Miaka nodded. "I'd appreciate it." She said thankfully.   
  
"Except...I kind of threw a plate at him..." Misara muttered as she walked away.   
  
"You WHAT?" Miaka shrieked from behind her.   
  
Misara wandered around for a while, looking for Tamahome, but she couldn't find him anywhere. While she was searching, Tokaki came out looking for her and caught her while she was tromping through the garden. He seemed to know that she was looking for Tamahome, and he pulled her aside, telling her that he wanted to talk to her about Tamahome and Miaka. His unusually serious look led Misara to follow him quietly.  
  
"I'd appreciate it if you would not talk with Tamahome about the Priestess of Suzaku. It would be better for him if he would just forget her."  
  
"What do you mean??" Misara cried, confused but indignant that he knew exactly why she was looking for Tamahome.  
  
"I told Tamahome that he should forget about loving the Priestess of Suzaku."  
  
"But...WHY?" Misara shrieked.   
  
Tokaki sighed impatiently. "Once she summons the beast god, she must return to her own world, and Tamahome will never see her again. It is better for him if he learns to get along without her now instead of after she summons Suzaku."  
  
Misara hesitated. "Are you sure that she has to go back to her own world? I mean, how do you even know?"  
  
Tokaki looked at her with an expression she couldn't read. "I know, because the same thing happened to the Priestess of Byakko and Tatara. She summoned Byakko, then wished to stay in this world with Tatara, but the beast god would not grant that wish." Misara looked up quickly at him but he didn't see her surprised face and continued. "I taught Tamahome martial arts when he was just a kid, and I don't want him to be hurt the same way Tatara was. Please think about what I've said, and don't take the Priestess' side on this. It's better for both of them." He finished quietly, then looked at her as he waited for her to agree.   
  
But Misara had forgotten about Tamahome and Miaka. She was thinking about Hotohori, and when she didn't answer Tokaki right away, he reached over and tugged on her arm, causing her to jump. He looked at her strangely, but she didn't offer any explanation for her distraction. She nodded absently and he quietly sighed with relief.   
  
"This is all for the best. You know that, don't you?" He asked once more.   
  
"Yeah..." Misara said distractedly as she turned on her heel and headed off to her room.   
  
  
  
Later that night, about an hour before the sun was about to set, Misara was still in her room. She had refused to come out for dinner and wouldn't tell anybody what was bothering her. She wanted to contact Hotohori, but her mind was too confused for her to concentrate and she didn't think of looking for Chichiri. Suddenly, Tasuki burst into her room.   
  
"Have you seen Miaka?" he cried loudly. "We can't find her anywhere!"  
  
Misara shook her head slowly and Tasuki stamped his foot.   
  
"Then she must have...damn..." he said quietly.   
  
"What's going on?" Misara asked curiously. "She must have what?"  
  
Tasuki didn't answer right away.   
  
"Tasuki?" Misara said, a little impatiently.   
  
He looked up, a frown on his face. "She must have gone up to that stupid tower. Great." He added quietly to himself.   
  
"Why is that bad?" Misara asked as he turned to leave.   
  
"Because there are monsters up there!" He said loudly, turning around and giving her a look.   
  
"Well I didn't know that!" She shouted back at him as she followed him out of the room. The two of them hurried to find the others and found that they had already left for the mysterious tower, so they began the long trek to the tower by themselves.   
  
Misara's brow was furrowed in frustration. Angry at Tasuki for assuming she was an idiot and more than a little upset at Miaka for going off alone, she pouted halfway there. Weaving through her angry thoughts were thoughts of Hotohori and the summoning of Suzaku. Finally, she asked Tasuki why Miaka would have gone up to the tower in the first place. Subdued from walking with Misara ignoring him, Tasuki answered her sullenly.   
  
Apparently, legend said that if two lovers kissed on the top of that tower at the exact moment the sun set, they would never be separated. Lately there had been accounts of monsters killing people as they went up there, so everyone had been warned against going up there, the warriors of Suzaku, Miaka and Misara included. Misara didn't remember anyone saying anything to her, but she wasn't about to tell Tasuki that. Regardless of the danger, Miaka had told Tamahome to meet her there before the sunset, obviously hoping that Tamahome had changed his mind. While Tamahome, Nuriko, Mitsukake, Chiriko and Chichiri went up to the tower, they sent Tasuki to get Misara and to see if Miaka was with her after all. As he finished his story, they reached the gate to the tower just as Tamahome and the others ran toward them.   
  
"She's not there." Tamahome said flatly. He held out his hand and Misara saw one of Miaka's ribbons.   
  
"So...where is she then?" Misara sighed. Everyone shrugged except for Chichiri.   
  
"I have a good idea, no da..."  
  
Minutes later, they arrived at the monastery. They couldn't hear anything, but after a moment of concentration, Chichiri gave them the bad news.   
  
"Miaka's in there, for sure, no da. But so are at least 4 warriors of Seiryu, including Nakago and probably the Priestess as well. Also...there's one more person with them...and I think it's Tatara, no da."  
  
  
Boy, what a stupid ending to that chapter...but I was getting kind of tired and when I get tired, I get cranky...anyway, thanks for reading so far-I'll get to work on the next one soon, I promise. Sooner or later I'll just be cranking them out, so be patient! Thanks again! (I love you for not hating my story!)  
  



	26. Misara finds an interesting book...but l...

Chapter 26  
  
"Nakago..." Misara whispered to herself. Tasuki, standing next to her, heard her say something, but he couldn't hear clearly. He looked at her out of the corner of his eye and saw with surprise that her lips were trembling. Before he could do anything, Tokaki and Subaru ran up behind them, out of breath.   
  
"We're coming with you." Tokaki wheezed. Subaru nodded in agreement.  
  
"Sensei, we can handle this by ourselves. There's no need for you to get involved." Tamahome said firmly.   
  
Tokaki gave him a look and Tamahome backed off. "Tatara is in there." He said angrily. "We have every right to be involved, Little Ghost."   
  
Tamahome's eyes got wide, but before he could speak, Tasuki and Nuriko burst out laughing.   
  
"Little Ghost!" Tasuki cried, bending over and clutching his side. "That's so funny!"   
  
Misara, standing next to him, looked down at him strangely. "Why is that funny?"  
  
Tasuki only pointed to Tamahome, too overcome with laughter to speak again. Tamahome frowned angrily but didn't answer her question. Nuriko calmed down enough to tell her that the symbol on his forehead could also be translated as ghost.   
  
"Other kids used to call Tamahome "Little Ghost" when he was younger-and he hated it." Tokaki chuckled.   
  
Misara raised her eyebrows and smiled faintly, then looked pointedly at the entrance to the monastery.   
  
"Shouldn't we get going?" She asked a little contemptuously  
  
"Oh, right." Nuriko grinned. "Let's-" He stopped in mid-sentence and took a closer look at Misara, then gasped. "What did you do to your hair?"  
  
"You mean you've only just noticed?!?"   
  
  
Once inside the monastery, all humor disappeared as they tried to keep quiet. However, with nine people wandering around, it was hard not to make any noise. Luckily, there weren't any people around, and the group saw no one for at least fifteen minutes. Suddenly, Tokaki and Subaru stopped in front of a hallway that they were about to pass. The others turned back.   
  
"Sensei?" Tamahome asked quietly. Tokaki didn't answer, but looked at Subaru. She nodded silently and the two of them headed down the hallway, followed closely by six very confused Suzaku warriors.   
  
Misara, on the other hand, fell behind the group, then waited until they turned a corner to make her escape. She followed the strange feeling in her heart through the dark hallways. So engrossed in that eerie feeling that she didn't even bother to peek around corners, she paid no attention to the building around her or the rooms she passed through. Or who might be following her.   
  
As she made her way through a dark room, the strange feeling stopped suddenly. Startled, she paused momentarily, unsure of what to do next, and finally glanced around. The room looked to be some sort of library, and an open book on a nearby desk caught her eye. Picking it up, she strained to see it in the dim light, then suddenly dropped it in surprise. She took a few deep breaths, her mind racing. All of a sudden, that weird feeling started up again, this time stronger than ever, and she knew she had to get moving. She picked the book up slowly, then shoved it in the back pocket of her jeans and ran out the door.   
  
Moments later, she was running down a twisting hallway and once again not bothering to look where she was going. As she turned a sharp corner, she slammed into the back of somebody. She knew who it was without even looking up.   
  
"Nakago." She muttered. "I knew I'd find you here."   
  
"Did you really?" Was all he said.   
  
She finally looked up, and noticed that he wasn't alone. A tall, red-headed woman was standing next to him, looking at Misara with obvious disdain. Misara knew without even asking that she was a warrior of Seiryu.   
  
"Who is she, Nakago?" The woman asked scornfully. "She looks like the Priestess of Suzaku, but she's obviously not."   
  
Misara looked up at Nakago, waiting for him to answer the woman, but he said nothing. Instead, he motioned for Misara to follow him, and the two of them left the woman behind. Misara followed him silently through the hallways, wondering if he felt her eyes boring holes into his back. Finally she stopped glaring at him and looked at the walls around her. Without warning, he stopped, and she ran into the back of him. Biting her tongue to keep herself from apologizing, she took a few hasty steps backward as he turned around to face her.   
  
"I see you found the book I was looking at. The language was nothing I had ever seen before. What was it your friend called it?" He said, looking up at the ceiling thoughtfully.   
  
Misara narrowed her eyes. "English."   
  
"Ah..." He said, then motioned to the door they had stopped in front of. Misara threw him a nasty look, then pushed past him and opened the door.   
  
Standing just inside the room was Miaka's friend Yui, and next to her stood Taylor. The two of them turned around as Misara opened the door. When Taylor saw her standing there, she gasped in surprise, and running toward Misara, she threw her arms around her friend's neck.   
  
"Misara!" Taylor cried into her friend's hair. "I can't believe you're really here!"   
  
The obvious change in Taylor stunned Misara so much that she stood there, speechless, as Taylor finally let go of her and stood in front of her, crying.   
  
"Nakago told me you were coming, but I didn't really believe him! And now..." She trailed off and flung her arms around Misara again.   
  
"But-I thought you..." Misara started. I thought you hated me, she wanted to say, but she just couldn't spit it out. She was glad Taylor was okay, but something didn't feel right.   
  
Taylor let go of her once more and put her hands on Misara's shoulders. "I heard that you finally got a boyfriend...the emperor of Konan?" she laughed.   
  
Misara blushed. "Well, not really..." She stammered.   
  
"Did he kiss you yet?" Taylor grinned.   
  
Misara's face got redder. "Well...no..." She looked at the floor, completely embarrassed.   
  
"Sweet sixteen and never been kissed...too bad you'll die that way." Before a shocked Misara could react, Taylor put her hands around Misara's neck, and started choking her. As Misara looked into her friend's eyes, she saw that they were full of hatred, something that she had never seen in Taylor before. Tears welled up in her eyes.   
  
What am I going to do now? She thought desperately, struggling against Taylor, who was stronger than Misara remembered. Suddenly, out of the corner of her eye, Misara saw a figure running toward her.   
  
Tasuki hit Taylor in the back of the head with his fan, and stunned, she let go of Misara. Misara dropped to her knees, gasping for breath, as Taylor stumbled away from her.   
  
"Oh, no you don't!" Tasuki yelled, running after her. He took up his fan again, and Misara knew what he was going to do.   
  
"Tasuki, stop!" she cried out, standing up and trying to get to him. "Please don't hurt her!"   
  
"She's trying to kill you, idiot!" He turned to yell at her.   
  
"She's my best friend! Please!" She reached his side and took a hold of his arm. "Please don't hurt her!" He lowered his arm, and she looked over to where Taylor had gone. She was leaning against a pillar, apparently dizzy from the blow Tasuki had dealt her. Suddenly, Misara realized what she had to do. She took a step toward Taylor, then another, then noticed Nakago and Yui trying to get to her first. She hurried toward her friend, who tried to get away from her.   
  
"Leave me alone!" She cried. "I hate you!" She was about to pass out, and barely resisted when Misara took her arm. Misara threw a look over her shoulder and saw that Nakago had stopped, standing in front of Yui, unsure of what Misara was going to do. But the look on his face...Misara turned back to her friend.   
  
"I'm sorry, Taylor...this is for your own good." Taylor looked up fearfully at her as Misara pulled her ring off her finger and stuck it on Taylor's.   
  
Send Taylor home-get her away from here...  
  
With a flash of light, Taylor disappeared, along with Misara's ring, her only way of going home.   



	27. Misara finally sees Hotohori...but somet...

  
Misara stared for a moment at the place where Taylor had been, her eyes adjusting after the flash of light. She blinked a couple of times, both trying to see and fight back tears. Suddenly, the entire building started to shake, and Misara fell over in surprise.   
  
"Miboshi..." Nakago mused. "It appears he has taken over one of your friends, Misara." Misara stood unsteadily, unsure of what he meant. Suddenly, Tasuki was at her side, steadying her.   
  
"Are you alright?" He asked. She nodded distractedly, trying to feel if one of her friends were indeed in trouble. Unexpectedly, she felt all of them at once...they were all in danger.   
  
Before she could move, Nakago turned away and started walking. "It is time to summon Seiryu, Lady Yui." Yui nodded hesitantly, then moved to follow him. Over his shoulder, Nakago spoke to Misara. "Come along."   
  
She snorted. "Yeah, right. What for?"   
  
"Lady Yui will receive an extra wish if you are present at the summoning. This way, please."   
  
Tasuki began pulling Misara the other way. "We've got to go find the others..." he whispered.   
  
"I'm not going to ask you again, Misara." Nakago turned around angrily. "Come with me." As he spoke the order, his voice became distorted in Misara's mind, and she winced.   
  
"Come with me," he said again, softer this time. Although he spoke quietly, the words boomed inside Misara's head, and she took a step toward him.   
  
Tasuki tugged on her sleeve. "What are you doing? We've got to find the others! Come on!"   
  
Misara turned back to him and nodded. "Right." She said, then followed him for a few steps.   
  
"Misara!" The loud yell was even louder in her mind, and she grabbed the sides of her head with her hands.   
  
"Nakago, what are you doing?" Yui cried.   
  
"No..." Misara whispered.   
  
"What's going on, Misara?" Tasuki asked worriedly. "What's wrong?"  
  
She looked up at him miserably. "I...can't...help it..." She stammered, backing away from him and moving once more toward Nakago.   
  
"What do you mean?" Tasuki cried, grabbing both her shoulders. "Snap out of it, woman! Miaka and the others are in trouble-can't you feel it? Come on!"  
  
"Come with me, Misara." Nakago said, his face contorted with anger. She looked fearfully at him over her shoulder.   
  
"Don't listen to him, Misara!" Tasuki roared.   
  
"I...can't help it..." she said again, trying to pull herself out of his grasp.   
  
"Nakago!" Tasuki gritted his teeth. "She's supposed to go of her own will-you can't force her!"   
  
Nakago glared at him, but didn't answer him. "Come, Misara." He said, more softly this time.   
  
"Don't listen to him, Misara!" Tasuki cried.   
  
Misara's eyes flew from one to the other, not sure of who to obey. Tears welled up in her eyes again as she realized that Nakago's life force was stronger than Tasuki's...and so was his influence over her. She moved toward Nakago again.   
  
"No!" Tasuki shouted, grabbing her face this time. "Look at me, Misara!" He said angrily, forcing her to look at him. When her eyes finally focused on his face, she started struggling.   
  
"Let me go!" She cried, as Nakago called her name again.   
  
"Misara!" Tasuki roared again, then a thousand things happened at once.  
  
Tasuki kissed her...  
Nakago called her name...  
Chiriko stabbed himself...  
and Misara watched, in her mind, as Hotohori kissed a woman with long, purple hair...his wife...  
  
Misara fainted, and Tasuki barely caught her before she hit the floor. Picking her up, he headed out the door, but not before catching of glimpse of Nakago, who shrugged lightly and turned away.   
  
Tasuki hurried through the hallways, which normally wouldn't have been easy, carrying Misara. But this time, he couldn't even tell that he was carrying her. He, too, had felt something from Chiriko, and the worry and desperation he felt combined with his shame for kissing Misara. He turned a corner and found the rest of the Suzaku warriors. They were watching Chiriko, who was covered in his own blood and apparently trying to kill himself. As he stabbed himself once more, Misara woke with a start and Tasuki dropped her. She looked up from the floor and saw Chiriko.   
  
"Chiriko!" She cried. "Stop!"   
  
Surprised, he looked down at her. "I...have to kill...this thing...inside of...me..." he gasped.   
  
Suddenly, Misara realized what Nakago had meant. Miboshi, whoever he was, had taken over Chiriko's body! Misara's mind raced for a solution, but she couldn't think of anything. Chiriko cried out in pain again. Then, she had an idea.   
  
"Chiriko, give me that scroll that Taitskun gave you!" She called up to him. He quickly reached into his shirt and pulled it out, but apparently Miboshi knew what she was planning for he wouldn't let Chiriko give it to her.   
  
"Chichiri, give me your staff." Misara whispered, and the monk quickly obliged.   
  
"What are you going to do?" he asked. "Trap Miboshi inside the scroll?"   
  
"I'm going to try," she said, "but I'm not sure if it will work. First I have to get that scroll away from him..."  
  
Suddenly, Chiriko stabbed himself again, trying to distract the demon inside him, and it dropped the scroll down to her.   
  
She caught it with one hand and opened it quickly. Now what? She thought. She felt a hand on her shoulder, and she turned around to see Chichiri standing there, giving her his strength. Then she knew what she had to do. Throwing the open scroll on to the floor, she slammed the end of the staff into it. A blinding red light shot out of the place where the staff and the scroll connected and hit Chiriko next to his heart.   
  
Misara screamed the spell that Chichiri shoved into her mind, the words sounding foreign and garbled to her. Apparently they worked, for the light surrounded Chiriko completely, and she couldn't see him for a second. Then, a blue ball of light flashed inside the red ball around Chiriko and flew down toward the scroll. As it entered the scroll, the staff Misara was holding grew hot and started shaking, and she had to let go of it. It fell over as the scroll curled back up, and Chiriko dropped to the floor. Misara ignored the scroll and hurried over to Chiriko.   
  
"Are you alright?" She cried, as the others came running over. Mitsukake smiled as he leaned down and held up his palm, his symbol shining brightly. In a few seconds, Chiriko was fine and all the blood was gone. Everyone sighed with relief, but Misara stood up worriedly.   
  
"Miaka, Yui is about to summon Seiryu." She said.   
  
"We've got to stop her!" Tamahome cried. Misara was about to reply when the building started to shake again.   
  
"What-? What's going on??" Miaka cried.   
  
"We're too late!" Chichiri cried. "She's already summoned Seiryu!"  
  
"What do we do now?" Nuriko cried.   
  
"We've got to get out of here. There's nothing we can do now!" Chichiri said firmly. He picked up his staff and the scroll that Miboshi was trapped in. "Let's go!" Throwing down his cape, the group huddled onto it. Tokaki and Subaru stood away from them, Tokaki holding a limp person in his arms.   
  
"Get out of here, now!" Subaru cried. "We'll be alright!"   
  
The warriors of Suzaku nodded. "Let's go!" Chichiri said again, and they disappeared into darkness.   
  
  
  
  
When Misara opened her eyes again, she saw her room, back in the palace in Konan. She was lying on top of her bed, and Tasuki was sleeping next to her. She sat up quickly, causing him to stir, as she remembered everything that had happened at the monastery. Her hand flew up to her lips as she quietly gasped.   
  
He...kissed me...but why?   
  
Her mind was too confused to think about it rationally, and she climbed out of her bed, trying not to wake him up. Then she remembered Hotohori, and she forgot all about Tasuki kissing her when she thought about Hotohori kissing that...other woman.   
  
She hurried out of the room to find him, and ran into Nuriko.   
  
"Are you going to look for Hotohori?" Nuriko asked her. Misara nodded, and Nuriko told her that he would come along. The two of them continued down the hallway. Opening the door to the throne room, they saw Hotohori standing there with the rest of the Suzaku warriors. Misara and Nuriko caught the last part of Hotohori's sentence.   
  
"...can meet my wife, Houki."  
  
Misara gasped without thinking, and Hotohori looked up. When he saw her standing there, his eyes grew wide and he sat down heavily in his throne. The others turned around, and when they saw Misara, they looked at her sadly. Miaka took a tentative step toward her.  
  
"Your...wife?" Misara asked quietly. He nodded, horrified, but couldn't speak. "Congratulations..." Misara trailed off, then tried to smile. "I'm very happy for you."  
  
Hotohori covered his mouth with his hand and started shaking. Misara blinked back tears, trying to think of something to say. Nuriko's hand on her shoulder didn't help, and she shook it off, not caring whether she hurt Nuriko's feelings or not. She backed up, trying to find the door to get out, but she couldn't find the handle. When Hotohori saw her trying to leave, he stood quickly and tried to stop her.   
  
"Misara, wait..." he said, finally able to speak. When she saw that he was trying to come closer to her, she tried vainly to think of an excuse to leave the room.  
  
"You know, I'm still kind of...tired...so, if you would just wake me up when it's time for dinner..." she said, turning to face Nuriko. She pushed the door open behind her, slamming it into someone. She turned around quickly, only to find a half-sleeping Tasuki holding onto his face in pain.  
  
"Oh my...I'm so sorry!" she cried. Tasuki rubbed at his nose and looked up at her. He saw her shaken look and stopped.  
  
"I'm alright." He said slowly. "Are you-?" Misara nodded quickly, cutting him off, then tried to duck past him and get to her room. Unfortunately, Hotohori had caught up to her by that time.   
  
"Misara, please don't go." He said softly, touching her arm. "I must speak with you, please."  
  
Misara avoided looking at him as she tried again to think of a reason not to talk to him. But she was so shaken that she could think of nothing, and finally nodded sadly. Then she turned around and walked as fast as she could to her room as he tried to keep up. She sat down on her bed as he closed the door behind him and sat opposite her in a chair. She still didn't look at him, but instead stared at her fingers. Her hand felt strange with the absence of her ring, and for a brief second, she wondered where it was.   
  
"Misara..." Hotohori started.   
  
  
  
  
Okay, I realize that many of you will refuse to read the rest of this story after reading this chapter, so I just want to say thanks for reading up to here. Don't blame me! I told you in the beginning that this would follow the storyline more or less! I didn't have the heart to kill off Nuriko or Chiriko, so shame on me, I know. I'm not even sure yet if I'm going to keep Hotohori alive or not, so why break Misara's heart later? Yeah, I know-there's no excusing my stupidity. Why did she fall in love in the first place? Well, think about it-could you be around him and not fall in love? I thought not...besides, when I first thought of this story, I had originally planned for Misara and Tasuki, and didn't even know that I would be dumb enough to make her fall in love with Hotohori. What am I saying? Nothing can make up for it, I know...please don't tell me you hate me! You can hate me eternally...just don't tell me, because I'll cry. Really! I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry...  



	28. Hotohori proposes...but will Misara say ...

Chapter Twenty-Eight  
  
"You see, Misara," Hotohori started. "Well...that is to say..." he trailed off, trying to think of the right way to tell her what had happened. Misara peeked at him from under her eyelashes and saw the pained expression on his face. She suddenly felt sorry for him.   
  
"That's alright-you don't have to explain..." she said quickly, trying to make him feel better.   
  
He shook his head slowly. "No...I must tell you..." he hesitated for so long that Misara wasn't sure if he was going to say anything else. She peeked at him again and instantly regretted it. Two trails of tears ran down his face, causing Misara to forget that she didn't want to look at him as she lifted her head entirely and stared at him, aghast. Misara had never, ever seen him cry, and now that she had, she knew that she never wanted to see it again. Without thinking, she climbed off her bed and moved quickly over to where he sat. She sat on her knees in front of him and took his hands.   
  
"You really don't have to explain anything." she said softly.   
  
He shook his head again, a little angrily this time. "No!" he cried. "I owe it to you to explain myself..." he took a deep breath and continued.   
  
"When you left...that night...I was so sad. I couldn't do anything to stop you, and I didn't want to you leave me alone...and I thought that once you left, you couldn't ever come back. I couldn't admit to myself that you were gone forever," he said quietly as he finally looked at her. "and I didn't know what to do with myself." He sighed heavily. "And then Miaka left for Hokkan with the others and I couldn't even go with them because of my duties here. I felt so depressed-not knowing if you were alright and if you were coming back, and not knowing if Miaka was safe and when she would return. I wore myself out..." he trailed off finally, but once again kept his eyes averted from Misara's. "I'm so sorry, Misara." he whispered so softly that she could barely hear him.   
  
Misara had no idea what to do or what to say to him. She felt terrible just thinking about how miserable he was, but she still didn't understand how he ended up being married. As if he knew her thoughts, he sighed again and continued with his story.   
  
"My advisors pressured me greatly to find a wife...knowing that Konan needed an heir to the throne if Kutou ever attacked and I would have to go to war. Since you were gone from me forever, I didn't know what to do. I had planned..." he stopped for a moment, apparently fighting back more tears, and Misara looked away quickly, not wanting to see him cry anymore. "I had planned," he said thickly, as if there were something in his throat, "to ask you to marry me before you left with the others for Hokkan." Misara's head spun around to face him again and her lips mouthed the word 'marry' to herself. Hotohori didn't notice as he went on. "I didn't want to wait until we had summoned Suzaku, because I didn't know how long that would have been, and I was worried that something would happen to you before then. But then you left...you said you didn't want to stay here anymore...and I thought you meant...you didn't want to stay here with me. And then you were gone and I didn't think you could ever come back, even if you wanted to. And then one day...I met Houki." He looked at Misara again, who was still in shock from the 'marry' part. "Please don't misunderstand-I love Houki dearly. I would never have married her if I didn't love her. But I still love you too, Misara."  
  
Misara caught the last sentence as she came out of her reverie. "I know you do..." she whispered.   
  
"That's why I wanted-" he started very quickly, then stopped and made himself slow down. "That's why I wanted-why I WANT to ask you something now. I'm not quite sure how your culture deals with this...and I don't know if you'd be offended or not. But here the emperor can take as many wives as he wishes." He stopped for an instant and blinked quickly. "The first wife has priority over the rest, being the first, but..." Misara didn't hear the rest of his sentence as she realized exactly what he meant.   
  
Unknown to Hotohori, Misara had learned a quite a lot about this world and how it worked. She knew exactly what fate she would have if she chose to become Hotohori's second wife. She could marry him and be with him for the rest of her life, just like she wanted, but she'd only be second-rate to this Houki woman. She would not be respected like the first wife, and Houki could very well decide to hate her and make her life miserable. She would have Hotohori's love forever, but be reduced to almost nothing and thought of as a...what was the word they used? She thought. A...concubine. She shuddered involuntarily at the thought of what that little word meant. Hotohori felt her shudder while he was still talking. He looked down and saw her staring off into space, her eyes registering an emotion he couldn't quite read. He took her face in his hands and she blinked as if she just remembered he was there.   
  
"Misara?" He asked as he looked down into her face. He saw the way her eyes grew teary when she looked back at him, and he was instantly sorry that he asked her. He stood quickly, leaving her behind on the floor, and moved as fast as he could toward the door. He wanted desperately to be alone all of a sudden, but he turned for just a moment back to Misara, who was looking mournfully after him.   
  
"I'm sorry...I shouldn't have asked you, Misara. I wanted to make up for my actions toward you, and I only succeeded in hurting you more. I will not bother you with the subject any longer." He opened the door to leave.   
  
"Hotohori..." Misara called, and he turned back to her reluctantly. "I will...if you do not mind..." she swallowed visibly, and her eyes looked frightened as she finished her sentence. "I will consider your offer."   
  
Hotohori had paled slightly, thinking for all the world she was going to tell him that she never wanted to see him again, and now breathed a small sigh of relief. He nodded at her, then quickly left the room and hurried to his own, where he could be alone.   
  
After Hotohori left, Misara sat on the floor for a minute, thinking about what she had just done. After deciding she was too tired to make an immediate decision, she crawled into her bed with every intention of sleeping. For a few minutes, she could not fall asleep, but just before she finally did, she realized that she didn't want to make this decision on her own.   
  
  
The next time Misara opened her eyes, the sun was shining in through her window. Not sure how long she had slept, she climbed quickly out of bed and made for the door. Then she looked down and saw the state her clothes were in. Her shirt was wrinkled and her jeans were still dirty from running around that monastery. She grimaced slightly at the thought of what her hair looked like.   
  
"Well, I can't go out like this..." she said to herself. She opened up the wardrobe in the corner of her room and found some pieces of fabric that looked vaguely like a dress. After spending fifteen minutes of assembling her new outfit, she finally had it all on and was looking at herself in the nearest mirror. Not bad, she thought, smiling. She had put up her hair into a ponytail, and she now shook it out and pulled a brush though it, wincing when she hit a tangle. It still looked odd to her, to see Miaka's face in the mirror when ever she looked into one, but she was starting to get used to the shorter haircut. The bangs, unfortunately, were another problem, as she was forever pushing them out her eyes. Now that she was done, she took a final glance at herself. The shoes in the wardrobe were way to small, and she had reluctantly put on her tennis shoes, hoping no one would notice. Deciding that she didn't care, she headed once more for the door as a little voice spoke from the back of her mind. If you're going to be the emperor's wife, it said, you must look the part. Misara ignored it, for a second. "I haven't decided yet..." she muttered under her breath as she opened her bedroom door and took off down the hallway. After two seconds, she realized that getting anywhere in the dress would be difficult. It was a little too long on her, and the sleeves completely engulfed her hands. How do women DO anything in this? She asked herself indignantly as she turned a corner and ran directly into Tasuki.   
  
"Misara??" He asked incredulously, his eyes taking in her new outfit. "What are you doing dressed like that?!?"   
  
Misara frowned. "Thanks a lot!" She cried. "For once, I try to look nice and you jump all over me!"   
  
Instantly, his temper flared and his face got red. "That's not what I meant!" He yelled over her. She sighed loudly and put her hands on her hips.   
  
"Then what DO you mean?" she asked, a little quieter, but not much.   
  
He shrugged absently. "I don't know." he said, his anger gone. "I was just surprised to see you dressed like...that." He made an attempt at reconsiliation. "You look nice, really." She rolled her eyes and stepped past him, continuing down the hall. "You always look nice!" He called after her, but she just threw up her arms, said "Hah!" very loudly, and continued walking. "Well, you do." He muttered after her as he watched her leave. Suddenly, he remembered that he was supposed to be finding her, to bring her to dinner, and he sighed loudly as he took off down the hall after her.   
  
Misara turned the next corner and leaned up against the wall, her arms crossed. I always look nice? She asked herself. Why would he say that? A second later, as she tried to convince herself that she didn't care anyway, he came around the corner and knocked her over. As she tumbled to the floor, his foot got caught in her skirt and he fell over too. Thankfully, he didn't land on her, but his head hit the wall loudly. As he lay grimacing in pain, she tried to stand up, but all the fabric had tangled her up and she only succeeded in making a bigger mess. She was so upset that she started wailing.   
  
"Shut up, will ya?" Tasuki moaned, crawling to his feet. He reached out an arm for her to take and she grabbed it quickly. Unfortunately, her legs were still tangled and she would have fallen over once more if he didn't catch her. Once she got herself straightened out at last, she sighed loudly.   
  
"This dress is a death trap." She groaned. "If I had known I was going to break my legs wearing it, I would have stuck with my other clothes."   
  
"But you look nice." Tasuki offered, and she was about to glare at him once more when she thought better of it. "Anyway, I'm supposed to bring you to dinner. Are you hungry?" He asked.   
  
"Am I ever!" She cried. "Lead the way!"   
  
"Are you sure you don't want me to carry you? It would be safer." Tasuki grinned. Misara turned up her nose at him.   
  
"I can manage, thank you." She said haughtily, but didn't really mean it. She grabbed two large folds in her dress and pulled it up so she could walk, giving Tasuki a good look at her shoes. He raised his eyebrows and opened his mouth, but before he could speak, she cut him off. "Shut up, Tasuki. Just shut up."   
  
Tasuki led the way to dinner and even opened the door for her, much to her chagrin. She was too distracted by the fact that he was treating her like a lady that she didn't notice that for once, he was acting like a gentleman. As she walked in the door, she hoped desperately that he wouldn't pull out her chair. A happy-sounding shriek brought her back to reality as Nuriko came bounding over.   
  
"You're adorable!" he cried, picking at her sleeve. "Just adorable!" He repeated as he practically dragged her over to the table, leaving Tasuki at the door. Nuriko pushed her down into the chair next to his and asked the others at the table if they thought Misara looked adorable. After an initial snickering, they all smiled and agreed with Nuriko. Misara felt her cheeks redden and cursed herself for it. Just then, Hotohori walked into the room and saw her. She suddenly realized that she was hoping he would like her outfit. Thankfully, he smiled very kindly at her. She breathed a sigh of relief inwardly, then berated herself for even caring at all.   
  
After she got through dinner, she wanted to retreat to her room to be alone, but Nuriko and Tasuki tried to keep her with them. She tried desperately to get rid of them, but only succeeded in ditching Nuriko. Tasuki was walking with her to her room when suddenly, she felt a little prick in her heart. She stopped, unsure of what was going on. For some reason, it started hurting more and more, and she had to put her hand on the wall to steady herself.   
  
"Are you alright?" Tasuki asked worriedly. When she didn't answer, he touched her arm. "Misara?" he asked again.   
  
Suddenly, she felt as if all her insides had been taken out and all her strength left her. Before she could stop herself, she screamed loudly. Beside her, Tasuki gasped and grabbed his head, looking incredibly confused and lost. Misara fell to her knees and passed out.   



	29. Misara has too much to say...and not eno...

  
The warriors of Suzaku and Miaka stood around Misara's bed, where she had been lying unconscious for the past two hours. Even Mitsukake couldn't bring her around, but that was for another reason.   
  
It seemed that Yui had used one of her three wishes to seal Suzaku away, making each of the Suzaku warriors into ordinary humans, with no special powers at all. Each of them had felt their strength leave them, but had otherwise not been affected, except for the loss of their powers. Misara, unfortunately, had felt the force of all seven, and it had taken quite a lot out of her.   
  
They had sat around, waiting for Mitsukake to at least try to help her, but to no avail. He did the best he could, but she almost seemed to refuse to wake up. Her face was deathly pale, and she seemed smaller and frailer somehow.   
  
Although they were all very worried, one by one they left the room, apparently to leave Hotohori alone with her. Tasuki was the last one to leave, and he clumsily patted her hand before he left. Finally, Hotohori was alone with Misara, and he sat on the edge of her bed and took her hand in both of his. Unsure of what to say, he only sat there, occasionally wiping her forehead with a damp rag that Mitsukake left behind.   
  
It was about an hour before sunset when Misara showed signs of waking up. Her eyelashes flickered for a moment, then flew open as she sat up quickly. Unfortunately, she had sat up too fast after passing out like she had, and she put her hand to her forehead and moaned in pain.   
  
"Misara?" Hotohori asked tentatively. "Are you alright?"  
  
Misara turned to him almost as quickly, then leaned over and threw her arms around his neck. "What happened?" she sobbed into his neck. "I feel so strange..."   
  
Hotohori sighed. "Suzaku was sealed away by the Priestess of Seiryu." Misara looked up.   
  
"So...that means that-?" she asked anxiously, looking up at him.   
  
He nodded solemnly. "Its as if Suzaku never existed, and all of us are like ordinary people now."   
  
"Then, am I...not the Goddess any more?" she asked very quietly.   
  
"I don't know, Misara." Hotohori said after a minute.   
  
Misara sighed and closed her eyes, then laid her head on Hotohori's shoulder.   
  
"So...what happens now?" she asked him.   
  
"I don't know..." he said again. "I guess we'll have to see what happens next."   
  
As if on cue, there was a loud knock on the door. "Your majesty!" Someone on the other side called.   
  
Hotohori frowned. "Yes?"   
  
"The Kutou army has moved to attack us! This is the start of a war, your Highness!"   
  
Misara looked up at Hotohori, and there was a terrible look in his eyes.   
  
"Tell my advisors I shall meet with them immediately." He spoke forcefully. The person on the other side left quickly to obey. Misara let go of her hold on Hotohori's neck and sat back as Hotohori moved toward the door. Suddenly, he turned back to her, as if he just remembered that she was there. His face softened.   
  
"I'm sorry, Misara." He said, coming back over to where she sat.   
  
She smiled forcefully and waved him off. "I understand." She said. "Really." He smiled, and touched her chin with his hand.   
  
"Thank you." He said, and then he was gone.   
  
Misara sighed and climbed out of bed. She looked down and saw that she was still wearing that dress that she had taken so long to put on. Unfortunately, it too was now wrinkled. She rolled her eyes, ran her fingers through her hair, and left to find Tasuki.   
  
  
It didn't take her long. He was sitting in his room, alone, which was unusual for him. Misara had knocked quietly, and after a muffled reply, she had opened the door to find him sitting at his table, a bottle of sake in front of him. Misara rolled her eyes again.   
  
"You really should drop that stuff, you know." She teased. "It's bad for your liver."  
  
He looked up quickly at the sound of her voice. "You're okay?" He asked. She nodded, and sat down at the offered chair.   
  
"So you heard the news, right?" he asked.   
  
"About Kutou? Yeah."   
  
"Everybody's already agreed to fight with the army tomorrow, but..." he trailed off.   
  
"But what?" She asked, already knowing where this was leading.   
  
"Well...after what happened, with Suzaku being sealed away and all, we were hoping that you wouldn't come with us."   
  
"Why not?" She cried, a little too loudly.   
  
Tasuki looked uncomfortable. "Because...we don't want you getting hurt, I guess."  
  
"Is Miaka going?"  
  
"Well...yeah." He looked up quickly. "But Tamahome is trying to talk her out of it."   
  
Misara looked at him for a moment. He looked right back at her, then broke eye contact and reached for the bottle of sake. Misara leaned over quickly and snatched it out of his reach. Standing up, she made for the door, bottle still in hand. Suddenly she stopped, and turned around to face him.   
  
"Did you know that Hotohori proposed to me?" She asked, knowing full well that he didn't. Tasuki didn't look surprised, but he didn't look happy either. She ignored him. "I don't know what would possibly make you think that I wouldn't go with you. I'm still a part of this team, you know, and just because I'm not your Goddess anymore doesn't mean I'm helpless."   
  
"That's not what I meant, Misara!" Tasuki cried, standing up angrily. "You know that's not why we want you to stay behind!"   
  
Misara frowned at him for a moment, but she knew he was right. She sighed heavily, then walked back over to the table and sat down with the bottle of sake.   
  
"I just don't want to be left behind..." she said quietly. "So what's the real reason you don't want me coming with you?"  
  
Tasuki looked uncomfortable for a minute. "It's because of Nakago." He said finally. Misara looked up at the sound of his name. "Since we're not really warriors of Suzaku anymore, he'll have complete control over you. We don't want to give him any ideas by letting him see that you're on our side. We're just trying to protect you, that's all."   
  
Misara chewed on the side of her mouth, thinking it over. She understood his concern, but she still didn't want to stay here alone.   
  
Almost as if he had read her mind, Tasuki spoke. "Mitsukake and Chiriko are staying behind, to help with the wounded that come in." But Misara still wasn't convinced that she should stay, and Tasuki could see it in her eyes.   
  
While Misara was deep in thought, she picked up the bottle and took a drink without thinking. "Yuck!" She cried, snapping out of her mood. "I still don't get how you can drink this stuff!"   
  
"What are you talking about?" Tasuki said, offended. "That's good stuff!"   
  
"It's disgusting." She grumbled. Tasuki reached over and tried to take it away from her. Her eyes widened and she put it behind her back. "I don't think so!" she grinned.   
  
"What?" he cried. "If you're not going to drink it, give it up!"   
  
"No!" she laughed. "It's bad for you, and I don't like you getting drunk all the time. Maybe you should just stick to water." She teased.   
  
"Water?" Tasuki yelped. "I hate water!"   
  
Misara looked surprised. "Don't you even drink it?"  
  
"I like sake just fine, thank you very much!"  
  
Misara smiled evilly, and took another drink of the sake, grimacing after she swallowed it.  
  
"If you don't like it, why are you drinking it?" Tasuki grumbled.   
  
"Just teasing you." She replied, taking another drink. This one was a little too much, and she set it down in front of him. "Blegh...I think I'm done teasing you."  
  
Tasuki quickly grabbed it and took a drink. Then he tucked it under his arm and glared at her suspiciously, waiting for her to change her mind. Misara rolled her eyes as he took another drink a few seconds later.   
  
"Nice room." She said, looking around. Actually, hers was better, and she knew that he knew it. Tasuki shrugged.   
  
"Yeah, yeah..." he muttered, looking lost in thought.   
  
Misara turned back to him. "So...do you have a girlfriend back at the mountain?" she asked casually.   
  
Tasuki turned white. "Hell no! Girls are scary!"   
  
Misara stared at him for a second, then burst out laughing. The tough front that Tasuki had always put on...it was too funny to think about it. He looked serious, too, and that only made Misara laugh harder. Tasuki, fearless Tasuki, was afraid of girls?   
  
He took another drink of the sake and scowled at her. "What's so funny? I'm not afraid of you, in case you wondered."  
  
"You sure looked pretty scared when I threatened to take away your sake!" she laughed at him.   
  
"Whatever..." he grumbled.   
  
Misara laughed again and stood up. "Well, if all you're going to do is drink all night, I think I'll go find better company." Tasuki waved her off.   
  
"Go on, get out of here, ya harpy." He said, turning back to his sake. Misara laughed again and headed for the door, but just before she reached it, Tasuki spoke again.   
  
"When, uh...Hotohori asked you to marry him...what did you say?" he asked uncomfortably. Misara turned back to him and saw that he was trying to focus all his attention on the bottle of sake, as if her answer didn't really matter.   
  
Misara shrugged. "I told him that I would think about it." She said simply.   
  
"Have you? Thought about it, I mean." Tasuki finally looked up as Misara looked down at the floor.   
  
"No...not really." She admitted. "I mean, he asked me right before Suzaku was sealed away, so I haven't really had the chance, I guess." After a moment of silence, she looked up at him tearfully. "I don't know what to do..." she confessed. Tasuki stood quickly, a fearful look on his face.   
  
"Well, whatever you do, don't cry!" he said loudly. "I hate when girls cry!"   
  
Misara sniffed, wiped at her eyes and laughed weakly. "Sorry..."   
  
Tasuki sighed heavily in relief and motioned for her to sit down again. She did, and then took a rather large drink of the sake. Tasuki eyed her nervously.  
  
"I thought you didn't like that stuff." He said suspiciously.   
  
"I lied." She said, smiling widely.   
  
Tasuki's eyes widened and he reached for the bottle. "I think you've had enough of that, Misara." He said, trying to take it away from her.   
  
Misara sighed loudly and handed it back to him, then crossed her arms on the table and put her head on them. "I'm so confused, Tasuki." She said softly. "I know I love him, but...I don't know if I could stay here with him for the rest of my life." She looked up quickly. "I know you said that it wasn't possible for me to stay here anyway, but even if I could, I don't know if I would be able to leave everything behind. I don't know what my mother would do without me...she's probably worried sick about me right now." She sighed again. "I just wish I didn't have to choose between him and my world." Suddenly, her face lit up and she snapped her fingers. "That's it!"  
  
"What??" Tasuki cried at her sudden cheerful look.   
  
"I'll go ask Miaka!" Misara said happily. "She's got the same problem as me...I wonder what she's doing about it." Misara stood up once more. "Thanks for all your help, Tasuki." She reached over and patted his head, and he swatted her hand away.   
  
"Stop that!" he cried. "I didn't help you!"  
  
Misara laughed and threw her arms around his neck, kissing him several times on the cheek. Suddenly, she straightened and gave him a frightening look.   
  
"I forgot...you kissed me in the monastery in Hokkan. Why?"   
  
Tasuki looked extremely uncomfortable. "Well...you were...gonna..." he stuttered.   
  
"What?" she asked impatiently.   
  
"You were going to go with Nakago to summon Seiryu!" he said all in one breath.   
  
"Oh yeah..." Misara said thoughtfully, looking at the ceiling. Tasuki stood up and put his hands on her shoulders.   
  
"He had too much control over you, remember? That's why I don't want you coming with us tomorrow to fight!"   
  
Misara didn't say anything, but instead threw her arms around Tasuki's neck again. "That was my first and only kiss!" She cried loudly.   
  
"Yeah, I know..." Tasuki mumbled. "Sorry about that."   
  
"That's alright!" Misara laughed. "I'm glad it was you...and not Nakago." She added softly. He gave her a strange look, but she ignored it and headed for the door.   
  
"I'm going to talk to Miaka now!" She called over her shoulder. "Enjoy your sake!"  



	30. A new friendship...and a fierce battle

Misara walked happily to Miaka's room, glad to have a girl to talk to who would understand.   
But when she got there, the door was closed and she heard the voices of the priestess and an   
unmistakable Tamahome. As much as Misara wanted to talk to Miaka, she thought better of it, and   
decided to leave those two alone.   
  
I'll have to talk to her tomorrow then, before we leave, Misara thought a little reluctantly.   
Now that she had nothing to do, she didn't know where to go.   
  
I suppose I could go look for Nuriko and the others, she thought, but then she decided that   
she wasn't really in the mood for more teasing from Nuriko. So she hitched up her skirt and headed   
out to the gardens as the sun was starting to set.   
  
She sat under a huge willow, watching the sunset behind the trees until it had completely   
disappeared and the sky became very dark. The lights from the palace didn't reach the place where   
she sat, and she realized that it was kind of peaceful, being alone in the dark. She leaned back and   
closed her eyes.   
  
The next thing she knew, someone was shaking her awake. She frowned and pushed them   
away, yawning. Opening her eyes, she saw that it was morning, and crowded all around her were the   
warriors of Suzaku and Miaka. Hotohori was sitting next to her, looking very worried.   
  
"What?" She said, still yawning.   
  
"We've been looking for you all morning, Misara!" Tamahome said, a little angrily.   
  
She rubbed at her eyes. "Well, sorry." She muttered. "I guess I fell asleep out here..." She   
gave Tamahome a look. "That's no reason to get all bent out of shape, Tama."   
  
"We were worried about you." Hotohori said softly.   
  
Misara turned to him. "I didn't mean to make you worry." She said sincerely. She stood up   
and brushed the dirt off the back of her dress. "So..." she started. "What's going on? I mean,   
besides the fact that all of you came looking for me for no reason."   
  
No one said anything at first, and Misara raised an eyebrow. "If you weren't going to say   
anything, you could have let me sleep a little longer, you know."   
  
"Could I...talk to you alone?" Hotohori asked nervously, playing with the cuffs on his sleeves.   
  
"Huh?" She said, turning to him again. "Well, sure, I guess."   
  
"Alright! We'll leave you two alone now!" Miaka said loudly. She herded the rest of them   
away. "Come on, you guys, let's eat some breakfast!"   
  
As soon as they were gone, Misara yawned again and rubbed at her aching neck. "That's what   
I get for falling asleep like that..." she said to herself.   
  
"What did you say?" Hotohori asked.   
  
She waved her hand. "Oh, nothing." She yawned again. "So what did you want to talk to me   
about?"   
  
"Oh...well..." he started. It wasn't like him to act so nervous, Misara thought, as the two of   
them sat down on the nearest bench.   
  
"Hey..." She said, taking his hands and smiling up at him. "Whenever you're ready."   
  
Hotohori cleared his throat. "Did Tasuki talk to you about coming with us today?" Misara   
frowned a little.   
  
"Yes...well, sort of." She admitted. "Is that what this is about?"   
  
"Yes." Hotohori said.   
  
"I had planned on going with you, and I still am." Misara said stubbornly, knowing that he   
didn't want her to go.   
  
Hotohori looked incredibly uncomfortable for a moment and ran his hand through his hair.   
"Well..." he started.   
  
Misara held up her hand. "Hold on a second, Hotohori. If you're trying to convince me that I   
shouldn't go, you can just forget about it."   
  
Hotohori grabbed her shoulders. "No, I won't." He said firmly. Misara opened her mouth to   
speak, but he continued. "I cannot and will not let you go with us. It's too dangerous!"   
  
Misara pulled out of his grip. "I want to go! I don't care if you think it's dangerous or not!"   
  
"Please, Misara..." he begged. "Think about this rationally..." he reached for her hand, but   
she pulled it out of his reach again.   
  
"I don't want to think about this rationally! I want to go with you! Suzaku may not be around   
any longer, but I still consider myself the Goddess! I'm supposed to protect you!" She shot back.   
  
Hotohori sighed loudly. "Nothing I say is going to change your mind, is it?" he asked tiredly.   
  
"No." Misara said simply.   
  
  
Heading back to the palace, Hotohori was intercepted by one of his advisors, and Misara left   
him behind as she headed back to her room. On the way there, she ran into Houki, the last person she   
wanted to talk to. She knew that she had no reason to be ashamed or anything, but she still felt   
uncomfortable, and from the looks of it, so did Houki.   
  
"Lady Misara?" Houki asked cautiously. "Could I speak to you for a moment?" Misara   
looked around, but finding no escape, finally nodded dejectedly.   
  
"Well," Houki started, and Misara noted that she was wringing her hands. "You see, I was   
talking to my hus...er, his Highness, and he told me about you, and..." she trailed off, but Misara didn't   
speak, instead letting her continue. After a few moments, she did.   
  
"I think...that if you and...his Highness...are to be married..." she stopped again, and with a   
determined look in her eyes, rushed on. "I think we should be friends." She finally looked up at   
Misara, who didn't know what to say. That was the last thing Misara thought that Houki would say,   
and she was a little stunned, but pleased.   
  
"I would like us to be friends," Misara started, and Houki's eyes turned hopeful, "but I'm still   
not sure if I'm going to marry Hotohori or not."   
  
"Oh..." Houki said, looking as though that were the last thing she'd thought Misara would say.   
"Oh..."   
  
"Well," Misara went on, "I'd still like to be friends, if you don't mind."   
  
Houki smiled, looking for all the world like Nuriko, which Misara found a little disturbing. But   
she smiled back at the Empress, glad that she understood and that she didn't hate Misara.   
  
"Here..." Houki said suddenly, grabbing Misara's hand and putting something heavy into it.   
Upon closer inspection, Misara saw that it was a large ring with a golden phoenix on it, strung on a long   
chain. She looked up at Houki again, puzzled.   
  
Houki blushed. "His Highness gave it to me a long time ago...and I thought it might bring you   
luck today. You need Suzaku's protection more than I do." Misara didn't have the heart to tell her   
that Suzaku didn't exist anymore, so she smiled once more at the Empress and expressed her   
gratitude.   
  
  
Misara changed out of her dress and back into her old clothes, not really wanting to get the   
dress dirty or anything, since it really didn't belong to her. She had hung the ring around her neck, as it   
was too big to wear around her finger. Besides, she didn't really want Hotohori seeing it, because   
although it was obviously Houki's to give, she felt like a thief all the same. The book she had found in   
the monastery had been lying forgotten on her desk, and she stuck it in her pocket once more, wishing   
she had time to inspect it closer. Deciding that she was finally ready, she headed out to where the   
others were gathering to leave, not wanting them to leave her behind.   
  
She climbed onto her horse, her bow on her back, and waited for the others to do the same.   
When everyone was ready, they left the safety of the palace and headed toward the battlefield. By this   
time, Misara was almost regretting her decision to come, but she kept her face emotionless and stared   
straight ahead, not wanting to give herself away. Hotohori rode next to her in silence, and she knew   
that if she wanted to, he would take her back. Not sure what they would find when they got there,   
Misara was a little taken aback to see that the fighting had already started. From a nearby plateau, she   
could see Nakago and the rest of the Seiryu warriors. She couldn't see his face, but she just knew that   
Nakago was wearing that smile. She cringed in spite of herself, causing Hotohori to glance over at her.   
She turned to him. He was decked out in his war clothes: armor, sword, and a helmet complete with a   
plume. If the situation had been so serious, she might have laughed, but as this was definitely not the   
time, she kept her mouth closed.   
  
From the giant group of soldiers in front of them came sounds of steel clashing and battle cries.   
Before anyone could react, twin bolts of lightning came out of the sky and landed in the heart of the   
battle. Misara's group stopped in their tracks, not sure of where to go. Ahead of Misara, Tamahome   
made a rude noise and she heard him mutter, "Soi."   
  
Misara pulled her bow off her back and strung an arrow. She didn't have anywhere to aim it,   
however, although the thought of hitting Nakago with it made her smile just a little. Suddenly, the noise   
of the battle seemed to dim, and a bright blue light radiated from the plateau where the warriors of   
Seiryu and Yui were standing. Very clearly they could hear Yui say, "Kai-jin" and make her first wish.   
An identical blue light surrounded Miaka, and then extended to Misara. Miaka screamed as she began   
to disappear. Misara couldn't breathe as the world around her swirled and all the colors blurred   
together, finally turning black. The last thing she heard was Hotohori's voice, yelling her name.


	31. A hard decision...and some tears to be s...

Misara blinked a few times, then opened her eyes completely. Almost immediately shutting them again, she winced at the bright sunlight and rubbed at her eyes.   
  
"Are you awake now?" A voice drifted over.   
  
She turned toward the sound and saw Keisuke sitting in a nearby chair, a can in one hand and the Universe of the Four Gods book in the other.   
  
"What happened?" She asked. "I thought Yui wished for her and Miaka to leave the book world...didn't she?"  
  
Keisuke shrugged. "That's what Yui said. I don't know why you came back too, since she didn't say anything about you." He answered. "But then again," he continued, "you weren't the only one here that wasn't supposed to come."  
  
Misara was in the process of looking around the room when her head whipped back toward Keisuke. "What do you mean?"  
  
Keisuke motioned with his thumb toward a closed door. "Apparently Tamahome came with you as well." Misara groaned quietly.   
  
"Great..." she muttered. Just then, another door flew open and Tetsuya strode into the room, followed closely by a red-headed girl who looked very ashamed of herself.   
  
"Taylor?" Misara asked, although it wasn't really a question. She could see it was her best friend.   
  
"Misara, I'm really sorry!" Taylor cried out. "I didn't mean any of those things I said or did...please believe me!"  
  
"Apparently, she was under a spell of Nakago's while in the book." Keisuke said, holding it up. "It was broken when you sent her here with your ring."   
  
Misara stood up. "Really?" she asked hesitantly.  
  
Keisuke nodded, as did Tetsuya. Misara decided to believe them and went to embrace her friend. Taylor burst into tears.   
  
"I'm so sorry!" She cried.   
  
"It doesn't matter anymore, Taylor, really." Misara assured her. "I'm done with that world now."  
  
Taylor lifted her head from Misara's shoulder. "What do you mean?" She asked, alarmed.   
  
"I'm not the Goddess of the Sky anymore." Misara said quietly. "I mean, if there's no more Suzaku, there's no more...me."   
  
"But what about...?" Taylor trailed off, but Misara understood her unsaid question. She sighed.  
  
"I can't go back to that world now anyway, and even if I could...I don't think I could stay with Hotohori for the rest of my life." She looked up at Taylor. "Away from my mom, you, everything I've ever known? I couldn't give up my dreams for that sort of life...even though I love him..." Her voice cracked and she stopped speaking to get a hold of herself. "So-it doesn't matter anymore. I'm sure Hotohori will understand." She said louder, her voice still wavering.   
  
Keisuke sighed. "Maybe..." He muttered.   
  
"What?" Misara turned to him. "Maybe what?"  
  
He held up the book. "Hotohori is just a character in this book...I don't think he really exists." Misara still looked confused, so Keisuke hurried on. "This book was written a long time ago-but its basically a spell book. It takes the reader into it, where they live out the story, complete their role as priestess, and leave the book world. So technically, Hotohori is not a real person, and neither is-" he stopped, looked at the closed door behind him, and lower his voice before continuing. "Neither is Tamahome."  
  
A day later, Misara had had plenty of time to ponder Keisuke's thoughts on the book world-but she was still as confused as ever. Everything in that world had seemed so real to her...Hotohori was real, she was sure of it, but she was sure Miaka felt the same way about Tamahome-and that Miaka also knew he couldn't be real at the same time. She was so confused. Although she had told Taylor otherwise, a part of her still wanted to go back into that world, and be with Hotohori and all the other friends she had made there. It seemed like a good idea, to be with them for the rest of her life. But on the other hand, she couldn't leave her mother, or Taylor...or her school, her violin, and all her belongings. She had decided, before she would even think of deciding whether to go or stay, that she couldn't have both worlds. If she chose to stay here, she could never think about that other world again. And if she chose to go there and marry Hotohori...and be happy...she couldn't take anything with her to remind her of the life she left behind.   
  
The next two days passed in a blur. Misara went out with Keisuke a few times as he tried desperately to cheer her up. She was grateful to him for that, but she was too preoccupied with her thoughts to play video games or eat at a real Japanese sushi restaurant. Taylor tried to get in contact with Yui, but Yui wouldn't speak to her, Misara, or Miaka at all. It was hard for the two girls to leave Miaka's apartment, since they didn't speak Japanese and the tricks of the book world didn't carry over into this one. So the two of them stayed with Miaka, and Keisuke and Tetsuya visited them daily and tried to keep them company. But it wasn't until about four days after they had first left the book world that Keisuke brought it to Misara to read her something from it.  
  
He read of the battles between Kutou and Konan, boring Misara until he came to a part about Hotohori. Even as he was reading, the words were being filled in with the rest of the story. Keisuke read that Hotohori had come face to face with Nakago, and they were now preparing to fight. Even though Misara loved him with all her heart and knew he was strong, she knew he couldn't win against Nakago...not without Suzaku. Without thinking, she grabbed the book from Keisuke.   
  
"You idiot!" She screamed at it. "Don't fight him!" Her eyes welled up. "Don't fight him...please!"  
  
  
  
"please..." Hotohori looked up into the sky. He thought he had heard something...Misara's voice. His thoughts returning to the battle at hand, he noticed Nakago staring at him with a look he couldn't read. But then the voice came again.   
  
"Hotohori, stop!" It cried, louder this time. It seemed to come from everywhere. "Please, oh please Hotohori!" It was definitely Misara's voice, of that he was certain. "Misara?" he called. "Where are you?" "Oh Hotohori, don't fight with Nakago! He'll kill you, I know it!" It sounded like she was crying. Hotohori looked at Nakago. It was clear he could hear the voice too, and his face was a mixture of fury and jealousy. Misara must be speaking to him from her world, Hotohori decided. But how could she do that? But all of a sudden, he knew. He reached into his tunic and pulled out a large, golden ring on a chain. On the ring was Suzaku, and it was growing warmer. "Misara!" Hotohori called. "Why won't you come back?" There was a long pause, broken only by a loud sob from Misara. "Oh, please don't fight him, Hotohori! I'm not there to protect you-and he'll kill you if you fight him!" "Why won't you come back, Misara!" Hotohori cried. "Don't you love me?"  
  
"You know I do!" She cried back. Nakago kicked his horse in anger and it reared back, but Hotohori hardly noticed.   
  
"Then why won't you come back and stay with me, forever?" He asked.   
  
"I can't, Hotohori...I just can't stay with you."   
  
Stunned, Hotohori sat bewildered for a moment without speaking.   
  
"Oh Hotohori! I don't care if you hate me now, just don't fight him! I couldn't bear it if you died, Hotohori, please!"   
  
Hotohori's eyes narrowed.   
  
"Please, Hotohori!" Misara's voice begged him.   
  
Hotohori ignored her and urged his horse forward. Nakago smiled-just a little-and moved into an attack position.   
  
"Hotohori, no!"  
  
Hotohori ignored her again and kicked his horse, while at the same time, Nakago did the same, the two enemies lunging simultaneously at each other.   
  
"Hotohori!!!"  
  
There was a flash of light between Hotohori and Nakago, and another at the same time in front of Keisuke. Keisuke blinked rapidly, and when the light subsided, Misara had disappeared.   
  
"Taylor! Tetsuya! Get in here!" He yelled loudly at the two, who were in another room.   
  
The flash of light frightened both horses, and they each reared back, almost throwing off their riders, who were equally surprised. When the light was gone, in its place was Misara, almost. The figure looked exactly like her, but was transparent and shimmery white. She stood facing Hotohori, her arms held out to block him from moving further toward Nakago.   
  
Hotohori, although upset at Misara's refusal to stay with him, was immensely glad to see her, at least one last time. He jumped off his horse and ran toward her. She held up her hand to stop him from embracing her though, and he stood a few feet in front of her, noticing the tears that rolled down her cheeks.   
  
"Why...?" He asked again. "Why won't you stay here, with me?"  
  
She only looked at him sadly, and didn't reply. Hotohori noticed her form was getting more solid every second.   
  
He was so sad and angry at the same time, he didn't know what to say. No doubt she had her reasons, he supposed, but not telling him why was just cruel.  
  
Suddenly, Misara heard soft laughter behind her. She whirled around angrily and came face to face with Nakago. By this time, she was becoming even more solid, almost completely a part of this world, and part of her knew that if she came here completely, she might not be able to leave again. But her mind was on Nakago now, and she was so angry at him, she wanted to kill him.   
  
Whipping that book out of her pocket, she waved it in his face. "Where did you get this? I want to know. It's not Taylor's, so how did you get it?"  
  
He smiled that sardonic smile of his before answering. "Actually, it was your friend that found it in that library. Apparently, someone else has been in this world, someone from yours who speaks your language."   
  
Misara looked down at the book again. It was just an ordinary hardcover book, but it was small enough to fit in her pocket...and it did look kind of old.   
  
"Now that you've had a turn to question me, I want to ask you one of my own." Nakago said, still smiling. Misara looked up at him silently, waiting for the question. "Why won't you stay here, in this world?" Noticing that he didn't say "with Hotohori", Misara was a little taken aback, and unsure of what to say. She wasn't going to tell HIM the reason, but why he would ask anyway was beyond her.   
  
Ignoring his question, she turned back to Hotohori. "I came here to stop you from fighting Nakago." She said to him, turning the book over and over in her hands. "Now that that's done...I have to go home."   
  
"But we're not finished...no, not at all..." Nakago said, drawing his sword. Hotohori quickly did the same.   
  
"No!" Misara cried again. "Hotohori, don't!" She tugged on his arm. "Let's just go."   
  
"Stay back, Misara." Hotohori said quietly. "Stay out of this." He turned and looked at her, but she couldn't read his expression. "I'm going to kill him...for everything he's done to you."   
  
"But you can't kill him!" She cried, louder this time. "He's too strong!"   
  
Suddenly, Hotohori's eyes became angry, and he pushed Misara off him. Turning back to face Nakago, he was about to charge when an unexpected blast from Nakago threw Hotohori on his back. Nakago stood over him, sword raised, ready to impale Hotohori. Hotohori didn't move.   
  
"Get up!" Misara screamed at him. "He's going to kill you if you don't get up!"  
  
"I don't care anymore..." Hotohori said quietly. "I just wanted to say one thing to you first...just to let you know how I feel about you-how I've always felt about you." Apparently, Nakago thought this was amusing, so he waited for Hotohori to finish.   
  
"When you left the first time...right after we had failed to summon Suzaku...the next day it snowed here in Konan. It hardly ever snows, but that day it did. And when I woke up, and realized that you were really gone, and you would never come back, it seemed a long time left that I would have to live...always cold."   
  
Misara stared at him, while Nakago decided that he had heard enough. He raised his sword above his head, but just before he stabbed Hotohori, Misara dove between Hotohori and Nakago's sword, the sword going through her instead, and stopping before it pierced Hotohori's armor.   
  
**AAAAAHHHH! That's not the end, I swear! Not a very nice way to end this story, I know, so don't be mad, because it's not the end of it! I've grown rather attached to this, actually...and I've actually got plans for the OAV...what do you guys think? No, Misara doesn't die, if that's what you're worried about. Let me know if you think I should do the OAV...or how I should destroy Nakago...or how many times you think I should make Miaka go hungry...or whatever. Talk to me! Tell me the story is not bad! (Tell me if it is!) And coming soon...THE FINAL CHAPTER!! (of this part of the story anyway, if you guys want me to do the OAV...otherwise I'll just end it there) Complete with sappy song and all. I've already got one picked out, too.** 


	32. A hopeful ending

Chapter 31

**Alright-final chapter of this story!  (And the crowd sighs, "Finally!")  It didn't end the way I thought it would, so the OAV's aren't going to go the way I wanted either!  The ***** represent a change in scenes, like when a movie cuts from someone doing something to someone else doing something at the same time.  What am I doing? You're smart enough to figure it out without me.  Anyway, here it is, sappy song and all.  Weep weep weep…Oh, and I don't own this song-it's Billy Joel's.**  

*****

            The book fell out of Misara's hand onto the ground, next to Hotohori.  Nakago let out a cry of surprise at what he had done and quickly withdrew his sword, backing away.  Misara lifted herself off of Hotohori, looking very white, and tried to stand up, but couldn't.  Hotohori sat up as she fell again and caught her just before she hit the ground.  

            "Misara!" Hotohori cried.  

            She looked up at him.  "Are you alright?" She asked, a little weakly.

*****

            "Oh my lord…" Taylor gasped.  Tetsuya was gripping the back of her chair too tightly, making his knuckles turn white.  Keisuke kept reading, his voice strained, when suddenly, there was a large explosion outside.  

*****

            "Yui!" Miaka cried, her voice barely audible over the roar of wind.  Seiryu had appeared in their world, ravaging the city of Tokyo while Yui made her final wish.  "Yui!" Miaka cried again.  "Don't do it, Yui!  He'll devour you!  Yui!!"  Tamahome tried to hold her back, but she struggled against his grip, trying to get to Yui.

*****

            "Oh, Misara…" Hotohori moaned, unsure of what to do.  He didn't know where Mitsukake was…probably too far away to reach in time.  Nakago took a few steps back, his sword still dripping blood onto the ground.  

*****

            "Miaka…" Yui whispered.  "Good luck…"

*****

_Goodnight, my angel_

_Time to close your eyes_

_And save these questions for another day_

_I think I know what you've been asking me_

_I think you know what I've been trying to say_

_I promised I would never leave you_

_And you should always know_

_Wherever you may go_

_No matter where you are_

_I never will be far away_

*****

            Suddenly, Miaka felt a surge of power, and knew at once what Yui's final wish had been.  As the world fell down around her, she began to recite the incantation to summon Suzaku.

*****

            Somewhere on the battlefield, the warriors of Suzaku suddenly felt stronger.  

            "Miaka must have summoned Suzaku, no da!" Chichiri cried over the battle.  As Nuriko punched a hole through someone's shield, a bright red light surrounded them all, tearing them away from the fight and into Miaka's world.  

*****

            The same red light shone around Hotohori and Misara, and as they started to disappear, Nakago leapt forward and grabbed a hold of Misara's foot.  

*****

            Tires squealing, Tetsuya tore out of the driveway and further into the city, where a bright red light was shining.  Taylor hung on for dear life as Keisuke narrated from the backseat.

*****

            When Hotohori opened his eyes again, he was in a completely different world.  Misara was struggling to breathe in his arms, but she seemed to recognize the place around them.  "Are we in…your world?" Hotohori asked, breathlessly.  She nodded, coughing.  Then Hotohori noticed Nakago hanging on to Misara.  "Get off of her!" He shouted, enraged.  Nakago let go, and standing up, stared in awe at the buildings around him.  

*****

            "Give back Yui!" Miaka cried, surrounded by all the warriors of Suzaku except Hotohori.  "Give my best friend back to me!"  Seiryu, who had been tearing up the city, suddenly stopped and turned.  Suzaku had appeared, and was fast approaching.  

*****

            Hotohori stood up, set Misara as gently as he could onto the ground, and then pointed his sword at Nakago.  "Hotohori…" Misara whispered, but he didn't hear her.  He attacked Nakago, who was caught off-guard, still staring at the buildings.  He threw up his sword at the last second and blocked Hotohori's attack.  

*****

            "Seal Seiryu away!" Miaka cried again, making her second wish.  She threw up Chiriko's scroll, still containing Miboshi, and with another flash of red light, Seiryu was sealed inside it.  Miaka collapsed onto the ground, the effect of making the wishes so fast being almost too much for her to bear.  She looked up just in time to see Suzaku fly away, toward the south.  

            "What…?"  Tamahome muttered, trying to help Miaka to her feet.  "Where is he going?"

            Suddenly, they heard the sound of a car, and saw Tetsuya, Taylor and Keisuke racing toward them.  Tetsuya screeched to a halt in front of Miaka and the others, who all looked incredibly frightened of the car.  

            "What the hell is that?!?"  Tasuki cried, clinging to Nuriko, who was carrying an unconscious Yui.  

*****

_Goodnight my angel_

_Now it's time to sleep_

_And still so many things I want to say_

_Remember all the songs you sang for me_

_When we went sailing on an emerald bay_

_And like a boat out in the ocean_

_I'm rocking you to sleep_

_The water's dark_

_And deep inside this ancient heart_

You'll always be a part of me 

*****

            The two swords made hollow noises as they clashed against each other.  Even though Suzaku had been summoned, Hotohori still wasn't as powerful as Nakago-and he knew it.  But suddenly, Nakago stopped and looked surprised.  The symbol on his forehead flickered, then went out.  

            "Impossible…" He whispered.  "Seiryu has been sealed away…"

            Hotohori took this opportunity to attack again, and hit Nakago in the arm.  

            "Hotohori…" Misara murmured again.  Everything was starting to go dark.  She didn't want to die, not here…not now.  Suddenly, sitting next to her was a bright red phoenix.  Suzaku.  

*****

            "Miaka!  You've got to do something!" Keisuke shouted, as more buildings fell down around them.  

            "She'll be devoured if she makes her last wish!"  Tamahome shouted back.  

            _I wanted to wish for Tamahome to always be with me, _Miaka thought,_ but this is more important.  I won't be devoured…I will be strong._

She closed her eyes again, and concentrated.  

*****

            Hotohori made one last slice at Nakago, who was bleeding from numerous places.  Unfortunately, Nakago blocked it, and threw Hotohori backward, where he lost his footing.

*****

            "Suzaku?" Misara asked, even though she knew it was.  Then she heard his voice inside her head.  

            _"You still haven't made your last wish, Misara." _

            "I don't know what to wish for." She said, helplessly.  

            _"You could wish to live."_ The phoenix offered.  

            He was right.  She could wish to live…but that was so incredibly selfish.  

*****

            Nakago was starting to disappear in a blue haze.  He didn't belong in this world anymore.  But his last attack hit its mark, and Hotohori fell to the ground as Nakago disappeared, screaming.  Misara saw Hotohori fall, and cried loudly, but couldn't move.

*****

            "I wish for this world to be restored!" Miaka cried loudly.  

*****

            "I wish for Hotohori to live!" Misara cried at the same time.

*****

_Goodnight my angel_

_Now it's time to dream_

_And dream how wonderful your life will be_

_And someday your child may cry_

_And if you sing this lullaby_

_Then in your heart_

There will always be a part of me 

*****

            The phoenix bowed its head.  The city glowed with red light, and was instantly rebuilt, leaving no trace of ever having been destroyed.  When the light died away, everyone cheered, especially Miaka, who had fought the beast god inside her and had not been devoured.  They thought it was over, but the light remained, a few blocks away.  Keisuke opened the book, read a little, and gasped.  

*****

            Hotohori opened his eyes, expecting to be dead.  But the wound in his side was gone, and the blood on his armor was drying already.  He sat up, confused, then saw Misara and the phoenix.  

*****

            Miaka and the others ran as fast as they could toward the red light.  

*****

            The phoenix started to cry, and rested its head on Misara, its tears dripping on her.  Hotohori stared as her wound began to disappear.  

            Misara opened her eyes again, surprised.  The pain was leaving her…but why?

            "Of course…" Hotohori whispered.  "Phoenix tears have healing powers…"

            But just as he was starting to think that everything was all right, she began to shimmer and disappear.  

            Just then, Miaka and the others ran around the corner and stopped in surprise at the sight of Misara, Hotohori and the phoenix.  

            "Misara!" Tasuki cried.  

            "What's going on?" Hotohori roared, but he couldn't move to get to Misara.  

*****

            _"I can almost heal you," _ the phoenix said quietly, inside Misara's head.  _"but I can't bring you back to life completely.  However, your unselfish wish has secured you a place, in heaven's palace, with me."  _The phoenix spread his wings, and transformed back into Suzaku, who offered his arm to Misara.  _"You could come with me, even if it would only be temporary.  My warriors can bring you back to life, but they will struggle along the way.  It could even result in their deaths.  Is this what you want?"_  He asked, still holding out his hand.  Misara sat up, unsure.  

_            "Right now, every one of them is wishing you would be alive.  They are completely devoted to you, and I know you are devoted to them."  _Suzaku continued.  _"They know in their hearts what they must do, and they are not afraid."_  He smiled down at her.  _"They will fight for you, Goddess of the Sky, and if they had to live without you, they would be sad.  Don't give them a reason to be sad."_  She nodded, and stood up.

            Suzaku held out his hand to her once more, and in a flash of sparkling light, she took it, and they disappeared.

*****

_Someday we'll all be gone_

_But lullabies go on and on_

_They never die_

_That's how you_

_And I _

Will be 

*****

**Ready for the sequel?  I promise it won't be as long as this was!  Don't worry, Misara's not dead, I swear!  She's coming back!  I'll probably post the sequel as a separate story, so keep watching!  That is, if you don't hate me by now…Thanks for sticking with me, everyone! I hope you liked it!**


End file.
